Study Overview Rationale and Purpose
Learning about standards-based teaching through field experiences is an essential component of an effective pre-service mathematics teacher education program. Student teaching is the fundamental field experience where pre-service teachers have the opportunity to conceive and develop standards-based instructional practices under the guidance of mentors. Yet, research reveals that mentoring for novice teachers is most often focused on providing technical and emotional support rather than supporting teachers learning to teach with standards-based instructional practices (Wang & Odell, 2002). In addition, university supervisors’ efforts to mentor mathematics student teachers toward standards-based instructional practices are hindered by their limited opportunities to meet with their assigned student teachers (Borko & Mayfield, 1995; Frykholm, 1996). Unlike cooperating teachers, who are on-site, university supervisors are often
disconnected from the context of student teachers’ day-to-day experiences that could serve as catalysts for discussions about standards-based teaching. Online social networking provides an opportunity for consistent communication between university supervisors and student teachers about student teachers’ daily experiences. Thus, online social networking is a potential venue for university supervisors to facilitate student teachers’ understanding and implementation of standards-based instructional practices that are grounded in their authentic student teaching experiences. The purpose of this
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study was to explore the potential of online social networking as a venue for mentoring secondary mathematics student teachers’ toward standards-based instructional practices.
Participants and Context
The study participants were secondary mathematics student teachers enrolled in the Masters with Initial Certification Program (MIC) at a large research university in the southeastern United States. Three to four times a week, study participants posted online journal entries about their student teaching experiences on an online social networking site designated for MIC student teachers and their university supervisors (US). The US and researcher for this study read and responded to the study participants ’online journal posts and particularly attended to opportunities to mentor study participants toward standards-based instruction via the online social networking site.
Data Collection and Analysis
The online communications between the university supervisor and study
participants on the social networking site were reviewed for content related to standards- based instruction. In addition, study participants were interviewed about their perception of how online mentoring conversations were related to their growth in implementing standards-based instructional practices. Blog posts data and interview data were analyzed for emerging themes in order address the following research questions.
Research Questions
1) What is the content of mentoring secondary student teachers for standards-based instruction in an online environment–that is, what is the content of mentoring in an online environment in relation to the following aspects standards–based
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elevating conceptual understanding and surfacing ‘big’ mathematical ideas,
eliciting and attending to students’ mathematical thinking,
connecting mathematics to real-life contexts,
using and connecting a variety of representations,
facilitating active discovery and mathematical investigations,
promoting student collaboration and mathematical discourse and,
attending to equity in mathematics instruction.
2) How are online mentoring conversations related to student teachers’ developing conception of standards-based teaching practices? (Online mentoring
conversations are defined as segments of online communications that include at the minimum, a study participant’s initial blog post and a response from the university supervisor. In addition, mentoring conversations could include follow up responses from the study participants and/or university supervisor.)
a) What do mathematics student teachers’ online comments reveal about their developing conception and implementation of standards-based practices?
b) How are student teachers’ self-reported conceptions of standards- based instructional practices related to online mentoring
conversations about standards-based instruction?
General Finding
The overarching finding of this study was that online social networking was an effective venue for a university supervisor to mentor student teachers toward some
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aspects of standards-based instruction. In addition, online social networking proved to be a site for tracking and documenting student teacher’s developing conception and
implementation of standards-based instruction. The following section of this chapter will relate this study’s findings to research literature and discuss implications of specific findings of this study for teacher education and future research.
Discussion of Findings
Relationship to Literature on Mentoring Toward Standards-Based Instruction
The characteristics of face-to-face mentoring toward standards-based instruction found in research literature were replicated in online mentoring for this study. As
discussed in Chapter 2, the face-to-face mentoring processes that seem to support novice teachers’ (student teachers and first-year teachers) learning in relation to standards-based mathematics instruction include:
purposefully and consistently using specific teaching events as the catalysts for engaging student teachers in reflection and dialogue about their beliefs, subject matter knowledge, and developing practice;
challenging student teachers to reinterpret and reexamine teaching events in light of standard-based mathematics teaching practices, and
offering specific suggestions and reasons for standards-based practices to be implemented in student teachers’ current practice.(Bennett, 2010; Blanton, Berenson, & Norwood, 2001; Nilssen, 2010; Wang & Odell, 2002; Wang & Paine, 2001; Wang, Strong, & Odell, 2004)
As discussed extensively in Chapter 4, in this study, the university supervisor was able to enact the mentoring practices listed above in an online format by
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mining study participants’ online posts for material that could segue way to online conversations about standards-based instruction
affirming, justifying and suggesting strategies that embody standards based instruction
nudging study participants to consider, explore and implement teacher-actions that exemplify standards-based instructional practices
Similar to findings in researched cases of face-to-face mentoring, the mentoring practices manifested in the online environment of this study, seemed to contribute to student teachers’ progress toward standards-based instruction. The results of this study reveal the potential for teacher educators to enact a range of mentoring practices in an online environment and provide impetus for including online mentoring as a component of teacher candidate internship programs.
Implications for Facilitating Student Teachers’ Learning
This study was distinct from previous studies about mentoring toward standards- based instruction in that this study examined the online mentoring conversations between university supervisors and secondary mathematics students teachers for content related to the following aspects of standards based instruction,
elevating conceptual understanding and surfacing “ big” mathematical ideas,
eliciting and attending to students’ mathematical thinking,
connecting mathematics to real-life contexts,
using and connecting a variety of representations,
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promoting student collaboration and mathematical discourse. Analysis of the online mentoring content led to the following findings:
• Online mentoring seemed to help study participants make progress in relation to promoting student collaboration, facilitating mathematical discourse and eliciting students’ mathematical thinking.
• Online mentoring was a venue for the US to acknowledge study participants’ frustrations and to encourage study participants to rethink rather than abandon their prospects for teaching real-world lessons and for teaching lessons that focus on helping students understand the underlying mathematical concepts.
• Online mentoring seemed to be an effective venue for unpacking the key
components of instruction in relation to facilitating discovery activities and using effective representations
• Online mentoring did not prove to be an effective venue for study participants to engage in analyzing their students’ mathematical thinking.
• Online mentoring conversations revealed study participants’ progression through various stages of development in relation to aspects of standards based teaching practices.
• All study participants indicated that online mentoring supported their development in effectively enacting aspects of standards-based instruction. These findings illuminate the potential role of online mentoring in helping student teachers learn about standards-based instruction in the context of their internship experiences. The following section will discuss each of these findings and the
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Online mentoring seemed to help study participants make progress in
relation to promoting student collaboration, facilitating mathematical discourse and eliciting students’ mathematical thinking.
Online mentoring conversations revealed several study participants’ growth in relation to promoting student collaboration and mathematical discourse. Asking students to work in groups is a common instructional practice for novice teachers. Study
participants’ online comments about group work were likely catalysts for online mentoring conversations about promoting student collaboration and mathematical
discourse. The US consistently asked study participants about the group interactions they observed in their classrooms. Based on their responses, the US prompted study
participants to implement strategies to improve the quality of student collaboration. Study participants’ transitions from simply asking students to work in groups to implementing strategies to promote productive student collaboration and discourse during group work were clearly evident in the online mentoring conversations. This finding suggests that asking student teachers to describe their students’ group work interactions might be an effective tactic for initiating online conversations about strategies that promote student collaboration and mathematical discourse.
One study participants’ dramatic growth in eliciting students’ thinking when introducing new material was facilitated by the online social networking format used in this study. As discussed earlier, in response to Jake’s concern that he did not know how to “make things interesting” for his students, the US was able to share several examples from his fellow student teachers’ online posts describing their experiences implementing strategies that engaged students in their lessons. Although, the US suggested similar
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strategies to Jake in earlier online comments, it seemed that her responding with actual excerpts from fellow student teachers’ online posts was pivotal in spurring Jake to take action to implement various strategies that engaged students by eliciting their
mathematical thinking. In summary, using the online forum to connect Jake with fellow student teachers’ experiences seemed to be an effective strategy for moving Jake toward standards-based instruction. This finding suggests that online social networking could provide an effective forum for teacher educators to facilitate student teachers’ learning from each other about how to effectively implement standards-based teaching strategies.
Online mentoring was a venue for the US to acknowledge study participants’ frustrations and to encourage study participants to rethink rather than abandon their prospects for teaching “real-world” lessons and for teaching lessons that focus on surfacing the underlying mathematical concepts.
Study participants were frustrated and disappointed by their failed attempts to facilitate lessons that connected mathematics to real-life contexts and lessons that focus surfacing the concepts underlying procedures. Facilitating secondary mathematics lessons where students fully understand the underlying concepts and lessons where students meaningfully connect mathematics to real-life contexts are complicated tasks. In this study, study participants’ efficacy in accomplishing these tasks was hampered by their lack of facility at working within time constraints and their lack of knowledge of their student’s potential misunderstanding. Such deficiencies are common among novice teachers. Although study participants were not successful in orchestrating the “real- world” lessons or the concept-focused lessons they had envisioned, the US supported
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them in their process of learning to do so. Online mentoring made it possible for the US to give buoying feedback– to applaud study participants’ initial efforts, acknowledge participants’ challenges and assure participants of the possibility of their being more successful in the future. Thus, online mentoring can play a critical role in (a) helping student teachers navigate through unsuccessful attempts to enact standards-based
instructional practice and (b) encouraging student teachers to reframe rather than abandon their prospective for future implementation.
Online mentoring seemed to be an effective venue for unpacking the key components of instruction in relation to facilitating discovery activities and using effective representations.
Study participants online posts about their experiences facilitating discovery activities and using representations opened up opportunities to discuss key components involved in these instructional activities. As discussed earlier, online mentoring
discussions about using representations focused on the following two instructional considerations: (a) making sure a representation is mathematically sound and (b) extending a representation to encompasses the concepts inherent in a mathematical procedure. Online mentoring conversations related to facilitating discovery and
mathematical investigations addressed the following key issues: (a) motivating students to persist in working through discovery activities, (b) determining to what extent
discovery activities should be teacher led or student led and (c) incorporating debriefing discovery activities that reinforce and assess students’ learning. The instructional components discussed online might have been presented in study participants’ previous
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coursework. If so, online mentoring provided an opportunity to revisit and reiterate the components. On the other hand, the components discussed online might have simply surfaced as result of study participants’ student teaching experiences facilitating discovery activities and using representations. If so, online mentoring provided an opportunity to highlight key instructional considerations that might not have been specifically addressed in previous course work. In any case, the findings of this study revealed that online mentoring is a venue for reinforcing and/or introducing, not just the theoretical ideas, but also practical detail components of standards-based mathematics instruction. Furthermore, the findings suggest that online mentors, like the US for this study, who are not privy to the specific content presented in student teachers’
coursework, can nevertheless be helpful in addressing concrete issues involved in enacting aspects of standards-based instruction.
Online mentoring did not prove to be an effective venue for study participants to engage in analyzing their students’ mathematical thinking.
The initial guidelines provided to study participants about their online posts included the instructions in the course syllabus that online journal posts should include “observations about students’ mathematical thinking and learning.” In addition, the US often prompted study participants to describe their observations about students’
mathematical thinking. Despite the syllabus guidelines and the US’ online prompting, study participants’ online blog data did not include much analysis of students’ thinking. Findings in relation to Christy’s development, suggest that attending to students’ errors via bell-ringers might lead to online discussions focused on students’ mathematical
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thinking. There are several possible reasons for the lack of attention to students’ mathematical thinking in the online forum. Perhaps study participants did not have the opportunity to observe individual students’ mathematical thinking. Perhaps the syllabus guidelines were too open-ended and study participants needed a specific framework for analyzing student’s thinking. Perhaps retaining detailed observations about students’ mathematical thinking and recounting them later in the online forum was too arduous for study participants. More research is needed to explore strategies that might increase the occasions of online mentoring discussions focused on analyzing of students’
mathematical thinking.
Online mentoring conversations revealed study participants’ progression through various stages of development in relation to aspects of standards based teaching practices.
Identifying and characterizing study participants stages of development provides a perspective on the processes involved in student teachers’ learning to teach with standards-based instruction. Although it is not possible to conclude that all student teachers will progress through the various stages demonstrated by this study’s
participants, knowledge of the stages uncovered in this study can help teacher educators to facilitate student teachers’ learning. Just like knowledge of common student
misconceptions informs teachers about designing lessons, knowledge of stages through which student teachers have progressed toward standards-based instruction, can inform teacher educators’ approaches to mentoring and coursework design. For example, teacher educators can anticipate and prepare for the possibility that, like study participants,
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student teachers might initially feel inhibited about exploring standards-based teaching or feel disillusioned about efficacy of standards-based instructional practices. Similarly, the finding that study participants’ dissatisfaction with student engagement in lesson
activities preceded their successful implementation of standards-based strategies suggests that teacher educators could seize on student teachers’ dissatisfactions as opportunities to mentor toward standards-based instructional strategies. In conclusion, the cases studies presented in this research could be used as tools for training mentors to support student teachers’ development toward standards-based instruction.
All study participants indicated that online mentoring supported their development in effectively enacting aspects of standards-based instruction
All study participants reported that the university supervisor’s online comments supported their learning to enact standards-based instructional practices. This finding is in concert with finding from previous research studies that the university supervisor’s role in helping student teachers bridge theory to practice was enhanced by opportunities for more frequent communication with student teachers about their internship experiences. (Blanton, Berenson & Norwood, 2001; Cuenca, Schmeichel, Butler, Dinkelman & Nichols, 2011; Frykholm, 1998) In that regard, this finding suggests that university supervisors’ participation with student teachers in online social networking is a vehicle for frequent communications that can have an impact on student teachers’ learning about standards-based mathematics teaching.
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Implications for Future Research
In light of the promising findings of this study, researchers and teacher educators should continue to explore the potential for online mentoring of student teachers. More research is needed to delineate online journal formats and online mentoring strategies that seem to be most effective in facilitating student teachers’ learning about various aspects
standards-based instruction. Future research could also explore a comparison of and the relationship between online mentoring and face-to-face mentoring of student teachers.
Concluding Remarks
In response to Wang and Odell’s (2002) call for researchers to explore the content and processes of mentoring for standards-based teaching, this study examined the use of an online forum to mentor secondary mathematics teachers toward standards-based instructional practices. The overarching finding that online social networking was an effective venue for a university supervisor to mentor student teachers toward some aspects of standards-based instruction unveils the prospect of overcoming two persistent challenges in student teacher education: (a) the challenge to enhance a university
supervisor’s role as a mentor and (b) the challenge to support student teachers’
implementation of standards-based mathematics instruction. Finally, the cases of student teacher development examined in this study contribute to teacher educators’ knowledge and understanding of the paths by which novice secondary mathematics teachers come to enact standards-based instructional practices.
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