Thinking Outside the Equation for High School Math Teachers: Learning Activity 2 of 6 - Spatial Reasoning

Mathematics education has a rich and complex history, shaped largely by major educational reform initiatives. At the turn of the twentieth century, mathematics classrooms were often seen as learning laboratories which incorporated hands-on lessons and inquiry-based learning scenarios similar to what one might see in a science lab (Kilpatrick, 2014). Influential educators, like Dewey, were at the forefront, implementing constructivist pedagogies hinged on students constructing knowledge and making meaning for themselves (Dewey, 1950; Kilpatrick, 2014; Schiro,2013). These pedagogies were in stark contrast to traditional, lecture-based disseminations of information during this period in history. Throughout the decades following, political agendas and industrial demands in the US aimed at producing more mathematicians and scientists, along with international competition to be the best in mathematics, have retrograded pedagogical strategies to less progressive eras in history. Major educational reforms driven by federal initiatives like “A Nation at Risk,” “No Child Left Behind,” and “Race to the Top” have placed major emphasis on efficiency in mathematics education, thus promoting a factory model for schools (Kilpatrick, 2014; Schiro, 2013; Teitelbaum, 2014). As a result, teaching and learning today looks very similar to how it did in the nineteenth century, but with more emphasis on holding teachers accountable to teaching prescribed standards. So, it is no surprise then that the US has consistently fallen behind other countries in terms of mathematics achievement (Kilpatrick, 2014; Teitelbaum, 2014). Despite pushes for efficiency in mathematics education, educators like Boaler (2016) have been essential to the survival of progressive mathematics education. She and others view mathematics learning as less of a gift and more of a learned discipline. She has championed for pushes to foster growth mindset in mathematics teaching and learning, which is where this professional development is rooted. Boaler (2015) shares that students’ mindset about mathematics greatly shapes their beliefs about themselves as learners and impacts their confidence in constructing mathematical knowledge. There exist two types of mindsets: fixed and growth. People who have fixed mindsets about mathematics tend to view themselves as being able to reach a limit for how much they can understand. On the other hand, those who have a growth mindset are more inclined to persevere through mistakes and tend to have positive beliefs about themselves as mathematics learners as they essentially have endless potential to learn (Boaler, 2015; Yeager & Dweck, 2012). Furthermore, mindset tends to be infectious. Students whose teacher has a growth mindset about mathematics were shown to have higher achievements and better mathematical performance, even those students who were tracked into lower-level courses (Dweck, 2010).