Analyzing Tasks to Promote Equity in Secondary Mathematics Teacher Education
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to understand characteristics and outcomes of instructional tasks used to support preservice secondary mathematics teachers (PSMTs) in learning about equity in secondary mathematics methods courses. This study focuses on five instructional tasks from four purposefully chosen teacher education programs. These activities were chosen based on instructors' perceptions of instructional activities used to promote equity learning goals and outcomes. I developed a multidimensional framework to analyze and describe the nature of these tasks. All the tasks were found to vary in ways that PSMTs and instructors were engaged, equity emphases, and planned and unexpected outcomes. All of the tasks emphasized equity issues related to access and achievement, as well as outcomes of awareness, knowledge, and positive dispositions. Instructors played a critical role in mitigating the effects of tasks based on their choices of content, form, and task outcomes. My findings also suggest that using a combination of equity tasks would more reliably promote equity practice among PSMTs in a methods course than a single task.
Degree
Ph.D.
Advisors
Kenney, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Mathematics education
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