Mental processes underlying a mathematics teacher’s learning from student thinking

Abstract

<p>Teachers’ knowledge of students’ mathematical thinking is a growing area of research in mathematics education. The literature has reported plentiful evidence of the interplays between teachers’ mathematical knowledge and their knowledge of students’ mathematical thinking. The present study builds on this body of work to explain how such interplays occur. Over a semester, I worked in partnership with a secondary school mathematics teacher on cycles of task design, interactions with a student, and in-depth reflection on the student’s thinking about linear programming. Adopting and extending Piagetian constructs of assimilation and accommodation, I describe several key mental processes that illuminate the teacher’s learning of mathematics and of the student’s mathematical thinking. I conclude with a discussion of the study’s empirical and theoretical contributions to understanding teachers’ mathematical learning in relation to student thinking.</p>