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Meeting diverse learning needs in mathematics

In Effective Pedagogy in Mathematics/Pāngarau (2007), Anthony and Walshaw state that:

Effective teaching for diverse students demands teacher knowledge. Studies exploring the impact of content and pedagogical knowledge have shown that what teachers do in classrooms is very much dependent on what they know and believe about mathematics and on what they understand about the teaching and learning of mathematics. Successful teaching of mathematics requires a teacher to have both the intention and the effect to assist pupils to make sense of mathematical topics.

Effective Pedagogy in Mathematics/Pāngarau, 2007, p. 203

They also point out (2007, p. 69) that competency requires students to understand the specialised language of mathematics and that the language students use derives from the language used by their teacher.

I have often found that children struggling with mathematics do not understand the language demands of the task and therefore are unable to access the maths in order to succeed in the subject. With this knowledge in mind I ensured that children were given exposure to appropriate language, which I modelled consistently … I ensured that I consciously planned for and taught language objectives and mathematical objectives concurrently …

Teacher, Sylvia Park School: ALiM report

Guiding questions - He pātai

  • How well equipped are your teachers in terms of their mathematical content and pedagogical content knowledge?
  • Do your teachers explicitly and deliberately model the language of mathematics?
  • In what ways is an ethic of care evident in the mathematics teaching in your school?

References and other useful resources

  • Anthony, G. and Walshaw, M. (2009). Effective Pedagogy in Mathematics. Educational Practices Series No.19. Brussels, Belgium: International Bureau of Education.
    • Drawing on a wide range of research, this booklet describes 10 pedagogical practices that have been shown to “engage learners and lead to desirable outcomes”. The booklet is a summary of the findings from Effective Pedagogy in Mathematics/Pāngarau: Best Evidence Synthesis Iteration [BES] (Ministry of Education, 2007), by the same authors.
  • Ministry of Education. (2008). Getting Started. Numeracy Professional Development Project Book 3. Wellington, New Zealand: Ministry of Education.
  • The NZ Maths website has a number of sections that will support a school to develop and implement an effective targeted support programme. These sections include:
    • Figure It Out
      This extensive series of student books and teacher resources is available in schools. A number of the books are also available through the NZ Maths website, enabling teachers to use the activities, investigations, and games on data projectors.
    • Numeracy Projects
      All the resources related to the Numeracy Development Project are housed here and provide teachers with teaching and assessment support.
    • Assessment Tools
      This page describes and provides links to various tools that support teachers and schools with decisions about data collection.
    • National Standards Illustrations
      This page links to tasks and annotated student responses that illustrate achievement at particular standards.

Download the full print version: Issue 17: February 2012 (PDF, 2 MB)


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