Browsing by Author "Metz, Martina"

Now showing 1 - 10 of 10
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    Addressing the Challenge of Differentiation in Elementary Mathematics Classrooms
    (University of Calgary, 2016-05) Babb, Paulino Preciado; Metz, Martina; Sabbaghan, Soroush; Pinchbeck, Geoffrey; Aljarrah, Ayman; Davis, Brent; Werklund School of Education
    Addressing students’ diversity of skills and knowledge for mathematics instruction has been a common challenge for teachers. This paper reports results from an innovative partnership of school district, university and curricular material developers aimed at improving mathematics instruction at elementary level. We report successful cases of lessons enacting instructional practices that engage all students in the classroom, ensure they meet expected outcomes, and challenge them with further bonuses. The cases are analyzed based on mastery of learning, with a particular focus on continual assessment during class. We also include challenges we have faced in supporting teachers as they incorporate these practices in their daily teaching.
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    Attending and Responding to What Matters: A Protocol to Enhance Mathematics Pedagogy
    (University of Calgary, 2017-05) Metz, Martina; Preciado Babb, Paulino; Sabbaghan, Soroush; Davis, Brent; Ashebir, Alemu; Werklund School of Education
    For four years we have invested in improving mathematics teaching at the elementary level. By drawing from diverse research emphases in mathematics education and by considering the impact of lessons in terms of student engagement and performance, we have identified four key elements impacting learning in mathematics. Here, we describe the protocol currently used to structure feedback for teachers in the Math Minds Initiative. The key elements that comprise the protocol are: (1) effective variation, (2) continuous assessment, (3) responsive teaching, and (4) engagement.
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    Dynamic Responsive Pedagogy: Implications of Micro-Level Scaffolding
    (University of Calgary, 2015-06) Sabbaghan, Soroush; Preciado Babb, Paulino; Metz, Martina; Davis, Brent; Werklund School of Education
    In mathematics education, scaffolding is often viewed as a mechanism to provide temporary aid to learners to enhance mathematical understanding. Micro-level scaffolding is process by which the teacher returns the student(s) to a conceptual point where scaffolding is not needed. Then the teacher creates a series of incrementally more complex tasks leading to the original task. This process is dynamic, as it often requires multiple steps, and it is responsive because involves moment-by-moment assessment, which shapes each increment. In this paper, we present data on how experienced teachers in the Math Minds Initiative employ micro-level scaffolding. Implications of micro-level scaffolding are discussed.
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    Epiphanies in Mathematics Teaching: The Personal Learning of an Elementary Teacher
    (University of Calgary, 2015-06) Preciado Babb, Paulino; McInnis, Vicki; Metz, Martina; Sabbaghan, Soroush; Davis, Brent; Werklund School of Education
    The Math Minds partnership strives to increase student engagement, self-esteem and achievement in mathematics and also to deepen teachers’ conceptual understanding of mathematics for instruction. Through this partnership, elementary teachers are changing the way they teach mathematics. By breaking concepts into small steps, continually assessing all children for understanding along the way and giving opportunities for independent “practice” frequently during each lesson, students have shown a significant improvement in mathematics. We present the transformative learning experience of one teacher during one year in this partnership, with surprising results.
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    Juxtaposing Mathematical Extensions with Cognitvely Loaded Questions in the Mathematics Classrom
    (University of Calgary, 2016-05) Sabbaghan, Soroush; Babb, Paulino Preciado; Metz, Martina; Pinchbeck, Geoffrey; Aljarrah, Ayman; Davis, Brent; Werklund School of Education
    Providing mathematical extensions (i.e. bonus questions) intended to evoke deep mathematical thinking after students complete assigned tasks is challenging for teachers. In this paper, we use the Variation Theory of Learning to challenge a common misconception that mathematical extensions should include many interrelated elements and impose a high cognitive load to promote deeper thinking. We present an analysis of observed extensions and provide alternative routes. Pedagogical implications for the design of mathematical extensions are presented.
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    One Step Back, Three Forward: Success Through Mediated Challenge
    (University of Calgary, 2015-06) Metz, Martina; Sabbaghan, Soroush; Preciado Babb, Paulino; Davis, Brent; Werklund School of Education
    How can you keep all students engaged in deepening their mathematical understanding without overwhelming the weakest students or boring the strongest? Teachers in the Math Minds project design lessons around structured sequences that seek to engage all students with questions on which they can succeed, and to then proceed through increasingly sophisticated variations. Teachers attend closely to student responses so that they can adjust difficulty in a manner that allows success and challenge for all. In this paper, we describe key principles that have emerged from the Math Minds initiative. We draw particular attention to variation theory (Marton, 2015) and consider how it plays out in interaction with the other principles.
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    A phenomenological study of teachers' professional learning and their understanding of mathematics-for-teaching
    (2013-02) Preciado Babb, Armando Paulino; Metz, Martina; Marcotte, Chenoa
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    Teachers' Awareness of Variation
    (University of Calgary, 2016-05) Metz, Martina; Babb, Paulino Preciado; Sabbaghan, Soroush; Pinchbeck, Geoffrey; Aljarrah, Ayman; Davis, Brent; Werklund School of Education
    Here, we report on a study of teachers’ evolving awareness of how they work with patterns of variation to structure and teach mathematics lessons. We identify a number of critical features regarding teachers’ awareness of variation.
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    Transforming Mathematics Classroom Settings into Spaces of Expanding Possibilities
    (University of Calgary, 2016-05) Aljarrah, Ayman; Babb, Paulino Preciado; Metz, Martina; Sabbaghan, Soroush; Pinchbeck, Geoffrey; Davis, Brent; Werklund School of Education
    Transforming the classroom environment into a space of expanding possibilities requires learning experiences that challenge and expand learners’ understandings. Building on Metz et al’s. (2015) suggestion to structure mathematical variation in a responsive manner that keeps all students intrinsically engaged in deepening their mathematical understanding, this paper describes different forms of bonus questions generated by students, and how they were implemented.
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    Using Variation to Critique and Adapt Mathematical Tasks
    (University of Calgary, 2017-05) Metz, Martina; Preciado Babb, Armando Paulino; Sabbaghan, Soroush; Davis, Brent; Ashebir, Alemu; Werklund School of Education
    We report on four key ideas we have found important in our work with teachers based on almost five years of research with the Math Minds Initiative. These ideas combine the Variation Theory of Learning with a strong focus on continuous assessment to inform the way teachers adapt task sequences offered in the resource used by project teachers. In doing so, we expect that teachers aim to better serve both struggling students and those who need extension as they develop coherent mathematical knowing. We elaborate on each one of these ideas, with examples from the Initiative in this paper.