As a mathematics educator at a midsized public university, I have taught hundreds of undergraduate elementary education majors how to teach mathematics to elementary school children. When I first started teaching mathematics methods, I struggled with how to give my students the opportunity to actually practice teaching mathematics to children. College campuses generally do not have accessible populations of elementary school children whom preservice teachers can practice on. And even if I could persuade a local school to host my students for some practice teaching during the school day, college class periods are too short to allow for field trips to local schools. Eventually I decided to have my students teach mathematics lessons to one another during my class time, but it was not the same as having them teach children.
Student teaching is a critical component of preservice teacher education. During this time preservice teachers begin the transition from student to teacher. They find out if they have the desire or skills to teach. Their views and attitudes toward teaching, mathematics, and students are developed and challenged. In this setting, the subsequent success or failure as a teacher is often formed.
Thirty-one preservice teachers at a university in the Southeast of the United States were interviewed regarding their beliefs about the teaching mathematics to English Learners. Ruiz’s (1984) framework of language orientations was used to understand their responses related to the use of the native language in the mathematics class. Four typologies that ranged from language-as-problem to language-as-resource were inferred. Implications for teacher preparation are discussed.
In this second article of the 1993-94 series, a middle school teacher reflects on his work with Hispanic and Haitian students. He used what he has learned to recommend ways to help preservice teachers learn about students of other cultures.– Ed.
Effects of a videodisc problem solving approach embedded in constructivist-based instruction in mathematics methods course on preservice teachers' decisions about teaching mathematics strategies and attitudes toward mathematics and technologies
