Room 3106,
Education Building Course
information at www.csun.edu/~jg1857
Welcome to the
Mathematics Education Masters Program!
Over the next two years, youÕll
á
experience
and implement innovative practices in the teaching of mathematics and reflect
on reform methodology and curricula
á
become
familiar with mathematics-education research literature and participate in
classroom research as an aspect of reflective practice
á
become a
leader in mathematics education through presentations to colleagues and
participation in professional organizations and support networks.
This is an
exciting time to be a mathematics educator. Thanks to a research boom over the
past few decades about how students learn mathematics, the environments that
promote learning, and what mathematics teachers need to know, you have access
to a rich knowledge base about how to teach mathematics for understanding,
equity, and empowerment.
Advancements in the technologies of teaching (tools and materials, classroom and
discourse environments, and diagnostic and assessment strategies) increase your
potential to reach more students more effectively. Advancements in the technologies of research (e.g., ethnography, sociocultural
frameworks, video, and even brain imaging) and professional development (e.g., video, case studies, the Web, and
portfolios) enable you to continue to grow as a mathematics educator. To be a
leader in mathematics education today, you must keep informed about new methods
and technologies and how to use them effectively.
This is also a
time of unprecedented national (and international) articulation of the content
of mathematics education, for which you and your school are now held
accountable to a similarly unprecedented degree. Local, state, and national politics impact what and how you
teach and assess, and they influence which students have access to what kinds
of mathematics education.
Government agencies have tightened their control over educational
research and program evaluation, thus narrowing how high-quality mathematics
education is defined and what ÒcountsÓ as evidence of it. Today, being an education leader means staying
abreast of the political contexts motivating and shaping these frequent policy
changes, so that you can interpret and implement them in educationally sound
ways and help your colleagues do the same.
As the first
course in this masters-degree program, Contemporary Mathematics Teaching will introduce you to current theories of
mathematics teaching and learning and help you translate those theories into
practice. Major assignments will
center on your personal teaching experiences. You will also be introduced to current forms of educational
research, to start you on the path to systematic inquiry into your own
practice.
Course
Expectations
Participation
This course
requires a significant amount of your participation—in learning activities,
small- and whole-group discussions, and providing feedback and support for your
classmates. This course is based
heavily on a set of readings, and every session will include discussions and
activities related to the weekly (and prior) reading assignments. This course also relies on ÒrecordsÓ
(written, oral, and video) of episodes and elements of your own teaching
practice. We will ground our
in-class investigations of student learning and teaching techniques in these
records of practice, and use them to collaboratively resolve real teaching
problems. To establish a
productive community of practice, it is critical that all members participate
in class discussions and collaborative activities, and to do so as sensitively
and respectfully as possible.
Learning to give supportive and constructive feedback is an important
goal for this course. Remember to
point out the positive aspects of your classmatesÕ practice and to frame
criticism as suggestions for improvement.
Preparation
for class
Because the
literature is central to this course, you are unlikely to learn much without
reading it, and it will be nearly impossible to participate meaningfully in
class without completing the assigned articles for the session. In other words, not reading will be
detrimental to you and your classmates.
Most weeks, you will be assigned a brief writing task to focus and
deepen your reading and prepare you for class activities. I will collect these and they will
contribute to your course grade.
At times, preparation for class will involve planning a presentation of
your teaching practice for classmates.
Attendance
Given the
significant role of participation, your attendance at every class session is
crucial, both for your own learning and each otherÕs. Please make every effort to avoid
scheduling conflicts with class meetings and, out of respect for others, to
arrive promptly. Occasionally, an
absence will be inevitable. If you
foresee an absence, please discuss it with me in advance, so I can plan class
activities accordingly and so we can make arrangements regarding
assignments. Because participation
factors into the final course grade, missing classes or parts of classes can
indirectly affect your grade, as it prevents your participation.
You are required
to attend one math-education conference this semester, for at least four
hours. In exchange for your time,
there will be no class on November 25.
Good conference options are:
á
CSUN Math
Morsels Mini-Conference (campus, Oct. 25)
á
CA
Mathematics Council (CMC) Conferences (Palm Springs, Nov. 7-8, and
Monterey/Asilomar, Dec. 4-7; see www.cmc-math.org)
á
ASCD
Conference on Teaching and Learning (Los Angeles, Oct. 24-26; see www.ascd.org).
Generally, your
course grade will be your point total for the course assignments and
participation, as listed below.
Adjustments to the total may be made to reward substantial improvement.
Weekly
writing tasks 15
Analysis
of Questioning 10
Two-Day
Lesson Plan 25
Video
Analysis 30
Participation 20
Total 100
I expect all
assignments to be submitted on time.
Weekly assignments will not be accepted after the start of the session
for which they are due. If you are
absent, any assignment due on that night must be emailed to me prior, to arrive
on time; the next assignment will be due when you return, also on time. If I assign you a make-up assignment
for in-class work that you miss due to absence or lateness, it will be due a
week after I assign it and will be weighted as an additional weekly
assignment.
Major
assignments will be accepted up to one week late but will receive a reduced
score for lateness. Presentations
must be delivered during the scheduled class meeting unless you have previously
made a special arrangement with me.
Major assignments are always welcome before the due date!
á
SED 535
course reader (in the campus bookstore) and a three-ring binder for these and
other readings.
á
National
Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM). (2000). Principles and Standards
for School Mathematics. (Available from the NCTM for purchase
and online for members. Also in
the Oviatt Library and most likely in your school.)
á
(Highly
recommended) Membership in the NCTM.
Many course readings are available online for NCTM members, as is the Principles
and Standards. See membership types and join at www.nctm.org.
á
Email and
Web access. I will regularly email course information to the address you provide,
and you are expected to read it.
However, the college and university sends all official communications by
email to your CSUN account, so you must check your CSUN account or have it
forwarded to an account you read regularly. Go to www.csun.edu/webmail and enter your CSUN User ID and Password. To forward your CSUN email to your preferred address, go to www.csun.edu/account, log in, and select
Mail Forwarding. You will also be asked to retrieve some course materials
on the Web.
Assignments (more detailed requirements will be
provided in class)
Audio-record
part of a lesson you teach in which you use questioning for one or more of
these purposes:
á
Helping
students understand or connect mathematics content
á
Helping
students reason mathematically
á
Diagnosing
studentsÕ understanding
Select and
transcribe verbatim the 5-7-minute segment of audio that includes the most
interesting interactions among you and your students. Write an analysis of this segment of the lesson, in which
you interpret student responses to your questions, assess the questionsÕ
effectiveness, and discuss possible revisions to the questions. Prepare a 5-minute presentation in
which you discuss how you would revise your questioning, giving a few examples
from the transcript and your analysis to support your ideas. These presentations will be delivered
in small groups, with group discussion to follow.
Two-Day
Lesson Plan
Prepare a lesson
that spans two consecutive class meetings for a course you teach. The purpose of the lesson should be for
your students to develop a deep understanding of an algebraic or geometric
concept that is central to your course and to the CA content standards. The plan should appropriately
incorporate strategies for teaching for understanding indicated by the research
and by readings and discussions in this course.
Teach this
lesson to the target class. After
teaching this lesson, write a reflection on its effectiveness for facilitating
deep understanding of the concept(s) and moving students towards your stated
goal. Discuss how specific
students responded to parts of the lesson. Then describe how you would change the lesson if you were to
teach it again to these same students.
You will briefly present your lesson and reflection to our class for
discussion.
The focus of
this assignment is your ability to facilitate a whole-class discussion that
develops your studentsÕ understanding of a central mathematical concept and
encourages the widespread and autonomous engagement of your students. Video-record a discussion in one of
your classes, prepare a written analysis of a short segment of the video, and
present your analysis and reflection to classmates. Analyze and reflect on the
15-minute video segment and prepare a written report with four parts.
á
Instructional Context (relevant information about the
school and classroom settings and students)
á
Planning (your lesson plan and goals and their relation to
the larger curriculum and instructional context)
á
Analysis of Video Segment (your interpretation of student interactions
and responses)
á
Reflection (identification and evaluation of your decisions
and revisions for future facilitation).
You will briefly present your analysis in class,
summarizing the above information and facilitating a discussion in which you invite
your classmates to analyze a crucial moment in the lesson.
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
Michael D. Eisner College of Education
California State University, Northridge
The faculty of the Michael D. Eisner College of
Education, regionally focused and nationally recognized, is committed to Excellence
through Innovation. We believe
excellence includes the acquisition of professional knowledge, skills, and
dispositions and is demonstrated by the growth and renewal of ethical and
caring professionals - faculty, staff, candidates - and those they serve. Innovation occurs through collaborative
partnerships among communities of diverse learners who engage in creative and
reflective thinking. To this end
we continually strive to achieve the following competencies and values that
form the foundation of the Conceptual Framework.
o
We value academic excellence in the acquisition of professional knowledge and
skills.
o
We value the use of evidence for the purposes of monitoring candidate growth, determining
the impact of our programs, and informing ongoing program and unit
renewal. To this end we foster a
culture of evidence.
o
We value ethical
practice and what it means to become ethical and caring professionals.
o
We value collaborative
partnerships within the College of
Education as well as across disciplines with other CSUN faculty, P-12 faculty,
and other members of regional and national educational and service communities.
o
We value diversity in
styles of practice and are united in a dedication to acknowledging, learning
about, and addressing the varied strengths, interests, and needs of communities of diverse learners.
o
We value creative and
reflective thinking and practice.
SED 535 Tentative
Agenda Fall
2008
|
Date |
Topics |
Assignments
Due |
|
Week
1 August
26 |
Teaching
for understanding ¤
Theories
of learning |
Read:
Orton & Frobisher |
|
Week
2 September
2 |
Teaching
for understanding ¤
Recent
history of math reform ¤
Math-education
standards |
Read:
NCTM & CA process standards, Schmidt et al.,
National Mathematics Panel Report |
|
Week
3 September
9 |
Teaching
for understanding ¤
Cognitive
demand of tasks ¤
Questioning |
Read:
Stein et al., Pesek & Kirshner |
|
Week
4 September
16 |
Teaching
for understanding ¤
Assessing
understanding |
Read:
Boaler, Ball |
|
Week
5 September
23 |
Algebraic/geometric
development ¤
Developmental
stages ¤
Misconceptions
|
Read:
Graeber Analysis
of Questioning |
|
Week
6 September
30 |
Algebraic/geometric
development ¤
Algebra
content |
Read:
NCTM & CA algebra content standards, Steele & Steele |
|
Week
7 October
7 |
Algebraic/geometric
development ¤
Geometry
content |
Read:
NCTM & CA geometry content standards, Crowley Two-Day
Lesson Plan—Plan only |
|
Week
8 October
14 |
Algebraic/geometric
development ¤
Classroom
implementation Guest
speakers: Action Research Project |
Read:
Shaughnessy & Burger, Sowder & Philipp |
|
Week
9 October
21 |
Environments
for learning ¤
Mathematical
power ¤
Autonomy |
Read:
Greenwood, Lampert Two-Day
Lesson Plan—Reflection Two-Day
Lesson Plan presentations |
|
Math
Morsels Conference at CSUN, October 25 |
||
|
Week
10 October
28 |
Environments
for learning ¤
Classroom
discourse |
Read:
Chazan Two-Day
Lesson Plan presentations |
|
Week
11 November
4 |
Environments
for learning ¤
Classroom
discourse |
Read:
Hufferd-Ackles et al. |
|
Week
12 November
18 |
Environments
for learning ¤
Groupwork ¤
Guest
Speaker |
Read:
Cohen Draft
of Video Analysis
|
|
Week
13 December
2 |
Environments
for learning ¤
WhatÕs
really going on in mathematics classrooms? |
Read:
Jacobs, et al. Video
Analysis presentations |
|
Week
14 December
9 |
Wrap-up |
Video
Analysis
Video
Analysis presentations |