Transcript Year 1 Math Classes: - San Diego State University

Facets of Professional
Development:
One Size Does Not Fit All
Nadine Bezuk and Steve Klass
CMC-N 2005--CAMTE Strand
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Today’s Session
 Welcome
and introductions
 What we know about professional
development
 What we do in our professional
development
 Impact of our work
 Questions/discussion
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Characteristics of Expert
Teachers
Know the structure of the knowledge in
their disciplines;
 Know the conceptual barriers that are
likely to hinder learning;
 Have a well-organized content
knowledge and pedagogical content
knowledge (PCK); and
 Continuously assess their own learning,
knowledge, and practices.

(Bransford, Brown, and Cocking, 1999, p. 230)
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Effective Professional
Development
Is driven by a well-defined image of
effective classroom learning and
teaching;
 Provides opportunities for teachers to
build their content and PCK and
examine practice;
 Is research-based and engages
teachers as adult learners in the
learning approaches they will use with
their students; (continued)

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Effective Professional
Development (continued)
Provides opportunities for teachers to
collaborate with colleagues and others
to improve their practice;
 Supports teachers to serve in
leadership roles;
 Links with other parts of the education
system; and
 Is designed based on student learning
data and is continuously evaluated and
improved.
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
– Loucks-Horsley et al. (2003), p. 44
Our Belief System

Good professional development blends
content and pedagogy.
– Teachers with this understanding can teach
effectively from any curriculum materials.

Good professional development is led by
people with K-12 teaching experience and
expertise in mathematics and/or
mathematics education.
 All students can learn mathematics.
 Assessment should be used to inform
instruction.
– Use student thinking to make instructional
decisions.
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SDSU Professional Development
 Supported
by a $5.1M grant from
Qualcomm to Improve Student
Achievement in Mathematics
(ISAM).
 This is the sixth year of our work.
 We offer:
– University certificates and coursework
– District partnerships
– Professional development
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Characteristics of Our
Professional Development
 Accountable
for teacher growth and
increased student achievement
 Blends content and pedagogy
 Links to classroom practice
 Embeds equity
 Sustained over time
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Unique Facets of Our Work
 University
certificate programs
 District partnerships, including
district-based professional
development
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University Certificate Programs
Mathematics Specialist Certificate
Program (upper elementary)
 Primary Mathematics Specialist
Certificate Program

– 12 units of coursework
• 6 units of Mathematics coursework
• 6 units of Teacher Education coursework

We’re thinking about certificates for
middle school and high school
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University Certificate Programs
SDSU (not CTC) certificate
 Shows that teachers have special
expertise in teaching mathematics
 Some districts reward recipients with
stipends or salary credit
 Includes 6 units of graduate credit
 University ceremony is a morale booster

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District Partnerships
 What
are the district’s needs
related to mathematics?
 Collaboratively plan:
– Delivery model
– Teacher participation
– Starting options
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District Needs
 Improve
student achievement (as
measured by CST, CAHSEE)
 Improve student success in algebra
 Increase student participation in
higher-level mathematics courses
 Increase teacher effectiveness
 Help teachers meet NCLB
requirements
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Teacher Participation
 Voluntary
or mandatory
 Specific grade ranges (e.g., grades
4 - 6) or specific content (e.g.,
algebra)
 Working in a district with an intact
group of teachers or a mixed group
from several schools/districts
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A Variety of Delivery Models
One year, two years, more
 After school (4.5 hours (with dinner) or
3 hours)
 Release days with sub coverage
 Saturday sessions
 Weekly sessions

– Day of the week
One day a month
 Four days a year

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A Variety of Starting Options
 Summer
start
 Fall
start
 Winter start
 We
conduct informational sessions
prior to the start of sessions.
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Limiting Factors
 Time
 Money--for
stipends, subs,
materials
 Communication
 Melding professional development
and coursework/earning university
credit for professional development
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Distinctions Between Coursework
and Professional Development
Task
All
Course Credit
Professional
Readings
Read and think about
Extra readings, reflections
Student Work
Collect, analyze, and
discuss
Written analyses, collaboration,
readings
Planning
Share, collaboratively
plan
Provide evidence, analyze
more deeply, connect with
student thinking
Collaboration
Meet in groups to
discuss their work
Submit log/participate in online
discussion group
Math
Problems
Solve some outside of
sessions
Write-up problems and discuss
strategies
Assessment
Surveys, questionnaires,
quick writes
Math quizzes
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Assessing Students’
Understanding of Multiplication

What is multiplication? Write down anything you know
about multiplication. You can use words, numbers and
drawings.
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Assessing Students’
Understanding of Multiplication

Here is a multiplication fact: 7 x 6
Explain how you would figure out the answer.

Can you write a story problem for 7 x 6? What does the 7
mean? What does the 6 mean? What does the answer tell
us?

Can you draw a picture to show how you would solve this
problem?
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How We Measure Impact

Teacher growth: Content and pedagogy
– Quantitative and anecdotal data

Student achievement
– Gains on CST
– Matched pairs analysis: San Diego City
Schools students
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Impact on Teachers’ Content
Knowledge
Rational Number
%
Correct
Mean
Geometry
Pre-test Post-test Pre-test Post-test
61%
79%
45%
66%
Mode
69%
90%
43%
75%
Minimum
18%
44%
18%
31%
Maximum
95%
95%
75%
90%
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Sample Item from the Rational
Number Test
Place the following numbers in order from
smallest to largest: 0.42, 0.50, 0.423
Margaret, Sammy and Marie placed them in order
as follows. What might each of the students
have been thinking? How could you find out?
Margaret: 0.5
0.42
0.423
Sammy:
0.423
0.42
0.5
Maria:
0.42
0.423
0.5
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Sample Item from the Geometry
Test
A teacher gave her class the following problem:
A floor measures 12 ft. x 15 ft. How much
carpet would be needed in square yards?
Here are two student’s responses:
Dave’s answer: 15 x 12 = 180. I divided by 3
Because there are 3 feet in a yard. My answer is
60 square yards.
Enrique’s response: But I got 20 square yards.
I divided 15 by 3 and then 12 by 3 and then
multiplied.
a) Is Dave’s answer correct or incorrect?
b) If Dave’s answer is correct, explain how you know
it is correct.
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Changes Reported by Teachers
Question:
“As a result of this program, . . .”
%
Responding
“Yes”
Do you have a better understanding of
mathematics?
94%
Has your mathematics teaching changed?
98%
Have your beliefs changed?
87%
Have your expectations of what students
should know and be able to do
mathematically changed?
85%
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Impact on Teachers’ Instructional
Practices
Teachers report that they now:
 Try new strategies in their classrooms;
 Select among many tools including the
textbook, the pacing guide, and CGI
principles; and
 Recognize good mathematical problems
from the text that will help students
meet the standards.
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Impact on Student Achievement
 Challenges
– Data collection and design
– Quantitative data
– Performance assessment analysis
– How to identify a control/comparison
group
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Gains on CST Mean Scale
Scores, 2003 - 2005
Grade
State-wide
San Diego
2
9.0
23.0
3
17.8
25.6
4
10.4
20.6
5
17.5
30.3
6
10.4
20.6
Matched-pairs study in progress.
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One Teacher’s Comments About Our
Impact on Her Teaching
“I feel my knowledge and understanding
of mathematics has been expanded to
the point where I will never teach math
the same again. I know too much about
group/partner work, using manipulatives;
reflective writing, student-directed
teaching, student responsibility. In short, I
feel enlightened. I feel I finally
understand math.”
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References
Loucks-Horsley, S., et al. (2003).
Designing professional development for
teachers of science and mathematics
(2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin
Press.
 Bransford, J. D., Brown, A. L., &
Cocking, R. R. (1999). How people
learn. Washington, DC: National
Academy Press.

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Contact Us
[email protected]
[email protected]
http://pdc.sdsu.edu
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