Contradictions in prospective mathematics teachers’ initial classroom teaching as sources for professional learning

International audienceIn this paper we study the first field experiences of a prospective mathematics teacher in a secondary school. Using Activity Theory we focus on contradictions emerging in the process of designing and enacting lessons, the sources for these contradictions and the potential impact on teacher learning. The two prevailing tensions related to students’ engagement in doing mathematics and students’ unexpected difficulties can be interpreted as contradictions between the actual and intended status of the object and between the teacher’s goals and the mediating tools. Sources for these contradictions seem to be the contradictory teacher’s experiences from the teacher education context and typical characteristics of mathematics teaching in Greek secondary schools. We find that the teacher becomes more aware about these contradictions and the different possibilities to deal with them

Bridging the macro-micro divide: using an activity theory model to capture socio-cultural complexity in mathematics teaching and its development

This paper is methodologically based, addressing the study of mathematics teaching by linking micro- and macro-perspectives. Considering teaching as activity, it uses Activity Theory and, in particular, the Expanded Mediational Triangle (EMT) to consider the role of the broader social frame in which classroom teaching is situated. Theoretical and methodological approaches are illustrated through episodes from a study of the mathematics teaching and learning in a Year-10 class in a UK secondary school where students were considered as “lower achievers” in their year group. We show how a number of questions about mathematics teaching and learning emerging from microanalysis were investigated by the use of the EMT. This framework provided a way to address complexity in the activity of teaching and its development based on recognition of central social factors in mathematics teaching–learning

Transforming critical events through script writing in mathematics teacher education

This paper proposes a teacher education strategy based on a combination of critical events and scripting dialogues. This strategy was used in two teacher education contexts in Israel and Greece with thirty-four prospective teachers (PTs). The PTs identified critical events in the context of their field experiences and transformed them into scripting dialogues with the aim to handle students’ difficulties. The analysis focuses on the adopted pedagogical actions in the critical events and the scripting dialogues. The PTs used general and mathematics-specific actions to address students’ difficulties promoting their conceptual understanding

Teachers’ attempts to address both mathematical challenge and differentiation in whole class discussion

International audienceIn this paper we investigate how a group of six mathematics teachers in Greece deals with the need to balance work on mathematically demanding tasks and differentiation in lesson planning and enactment. Videotaped lessons and pre and post reflection interviews were analysed with a specific focus on whole class discussion. The findings show certain teaching practices that appear to promote both mathematical challenge and differentiation and emerging patterns of actions that make the challenge accessible to students

TRANSFORMING MEDIA ITEMS INTO CLASSROOM TASKS IN THE CONTEXT OF A STUDY GROUP

Interpretation of statistical information which is included in media extract

Η μαθηματική πρόκληση στη σχολική τάξη και στην εκπαιίδευση εκπαιδευτικών

Η μαθηματική πρόκληση στη διδασκαλία των μαθηματικώναποτελεί κεντρικό στόχο πολλών εκπαιδευτικών συστημάτων και Αναλυτικών Προγραμμάτων, ενώ γίνεται προσπάθεια να ενσωματωθούν κατάλληλες δραστηριότητες σε σχολικά εγχειρίδια και να επιμορφωθούν οι εκπαιδευτικοί σε προγράμματα επαγγελματικής εκπαίδευσης. Ωστόσο, η έρευνα και η εμπειρία δείχνουν ότι οι παραπάνω συνθήκες δεν αποτελούν εγγύηση για την δημιουργία πλούσιων μαθησιακών περιβαλλόντων που ενεργοποιούν όλους τους μαθητές στη σχολική τάξη. Σε αυτό το στρογγυλό τραπέζι εστιαζόμαστε στη μαθηματική πρόκλησηως συστατικό στοιχείο της διδασκαλίας των μαθηματικών και της μαθησιακής εμπειρίας των διδασκομένων με στόχο να εξετάσουμε ζητήματα που αναδύονται στο επίπεδο της έρευνας και της πρακτικής στη διεθνή αλλά και στην ελληνική εκπαιδευτική πραγματικότητα

Addressing equity, diversity and inclusion in academic publishing: Key initiatives from JMTE

This paper addresses the pressing issues of equity, diversity and inclusion in academic publishing, with a focus on mathematics education research. It highlights systemic biases and barriers that marginalise under-represented voices in the academic discourse. Through an analysis of the Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education’s (JMTE) publication patterns, it reveals a significant geographical imbalance and a disparity between the Global North and the Global South, prompting critical reflection on whose voices are prioritised. The paper outlines key initiatives undertaken by JMTE, such as forming an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee, broadening the aims and scope of the journal, developing inclusive reviewing guidelines, and fostering diversity among editors, reviewers and authors. These efforts aim to promote a more equitable, diverse, and inclusive field of mathematics education research by encouraging contributions from under-represented regions and communities and by addressing language barriers and institutional support issues

Publishing mathematics education research in English: Amplifying voices from the field

In this paper we investigate the issue of representation within the Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education (JMTE) and the broader academic publishing landscape, particularly focusing on the underrepresentation of authors from various world regions. A questionnaire, distributed globally, aimed to amplify the voices of the underrepresented, exploring the constraints and affordances of publishing in English-medium mathematics education research journals. The question that guided our investigation was: What do voices from the mathematics education community raise in their responses to questions about publishing in English-medium research journals like JMTE? We used qualitative methods to review the responses and identify common themes. The findings revealed significant barriers and challenges related to language, research location, and institutional support, highlighting the complexities of navigating the global academic community and the academic publishing culture. We propose actionable suggestions to foster a more equitable, diverse, and inclusive publishing environment

Research on probability and statistics education: Trends and directions

This chapter provides an overview of directions and trends within the Probability and Statistics Education Working Group of Congress of European Research in Mathematics Education (CERME), and compares them with international trends in these areas. It starts with a brief history of the working group, and discusses the main themes that recurred throughout the years. These include the relation between probability and statistics, technology, teacher knowledge and the need for interventionist research that goes beyond the description of problems but offers suggestions of how to improve probability and statistics education. Probability and statistics have very different historical origins. Statistics education is a marginal discipline in the sense that it is at the boundary of many other disciplines including mathematics education, statistics and psychology. As the statistics and probability topics have become part of the mainstream mathematics curricula in various countries since the late 1990s, teachers' knowledge on these topics became an ongoing interest to mathematics education researchers