Abstract
Recent research shows the promise of using tasks that situate mathematics in a pedagogical context in courses for secondary teachers. Such tasks can engage teachers in connecting undergraduate mathematics and secondary mathematics teaching, even when pedagogical knowledge is not needed to solve the task. We examine the phenomenon that the presence of pedagogical context appears to change the work of a mathematical task. We presented 17 practicing secondary teachers with the same set of arguments to validate, first in the context of teaching secondary mathematics, and then in the context of a university mathematics course. We argue that the construct of social positioning – as a student or teacher – explains differences in secondary teachers’ validations as well as the problem of disconnection between undergraduate mathematics and secondary teaching.
Original language | English (US) |
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Article number | 100698 |
Journal | Journal of Mathematical Behavior |
Volume | 55 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Sep 2019 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This research was supported in part by a Harold and Esther Edgerton Junior Faculty Award from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Elsevier Inc.
Keywords
- Mathematical knowledge for teaching
- Proof validation
- Secondary teachers
- Social positioning