We know that metacognitive students are successful in school (Sternberg "Instructional Science" 26:127-140, 1998). However, despite the recognition of the role of metacognition in student success, limited research has been done to explore teachers' explicit awareness of their metacognition and their ability to think about, talk about, and write…

The authors describe ways in which a history of mathematics course can help prospective teachers of mathematics develop knowledge they will need for teaching. The types of knowledge include content knowledge of mathematics, knowledge of mathematics for teaching, and pedagogical knowledge.

As teacher educators, we have observed that knowledge alone does not lead to the kinds of thoughtful teaching we strive for. Puzzled by differences in the teaching practices of teacher candidates having similar professional knowledge, we explore what might account for these differences. We address what is necessary, beyond traditional forms of…

This article describes a 6-year, districtwide staff-development project that was implemented in an attempt to change teacher attitudes and practices as they relate to English learners (ELs). The specific goals of the project were (a) to help the district's teachers develop the knowledge base, pedagogical skills, and professional attitudes required…

Teacher incompetence and the identification of incompetent teachers have become major educational issues. With the implementation of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), every student is expected to be taught by a "highly qualified" teacher. Although "highly qualified" does not guarantee competent teaching, the two often go…

These Proceedings are a written record of the research presented at the 34th Annual Meeting of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (PME-NA 2012) held in Kalamazoo, Michigan, November 1-4, 2012. The theme of the conference, "Navigating Transitions along Continuums," focuses on…

Mathematical competence of teachers continues to be an issue of great interest to mathematics educators within tertiary institutions and it is often thought of simultaneously with the notion of mathematics anxiety. While there has been considerable recent research into the latter, no clear conclusions have been able to be drawn about many aspects…

South African schools have been confronted with educational reform since the mid-nineties and the process is still continuing. The concomitant changes put a very high demand on physical sciences teachers and also have an impact on teacher behaviour. The purpose of this study was to probe whether teachers could be considered equipped to teach the…

This article presents results from a case study analyzing the process of change for early childhood educators as they engage in a semester-long professional development (PD) experience focused on developing a teacher research agenda related to mathematics instruction. During this PD experience, 11 participants (5 second-grade and 6 third-grade…

In the field of teacher knowledge, "beliefs" is a large term narrowly constructed. The beliefs theorized, researched, and discussed are beliefs about technique, methodology, curriculum, classroom management, professional development, and similarly. Spiritual and religious beliefs are for the most part omitted. This study argues that they should be…

Too often, early elementary teachers enter the classroom unprepared for the particular challenges of teaching children in grades 3 and under. Many were trained in programs that focused on older elementary grades, even though their license qualifies them to teach children as young as kindergarten. Teachers who obtained their certification through a…

In this paper we explore the growth of understanding of a group of preservice teachers, and their instructor, as they work collectively together on what we describe as a "mathematics for teaching" task. Through drawing on elements of improvisational theory, in particular the notion of the "better idea," we analyse how the preservice teachers'…

The debate on knowledge in New Education is generally dominated by two opposed Anglo-Saxon positions held by Dewey and Thorndike. This paper presents another line of division. Claparede and Vygotsky, two representative European figures of New Education are both scientists constructing a theory of psychological functioning, and heavily engaged in…

This article describes the rationale for pedagogical, technological and organizational choices in the design of a web-based and open virtual learning environment (VLE) promoting and sustaining self-directed language learning. Based on the last forty years of research on learner autonomy at the CRAPEL according to Holec's definition (1988), we…

There are now significant numbers of children who speak a language other than English when they enter the formal school system in Australia. Many of these children come from a language background that is entirely different from the school language. Many Indigenous children, however, come from creole-speaking backgrounds where their home language…