The impact of a professional development program on teachers' mathematical knowledge for teaching, instruction, and student achievement
Synopsis
This academic paper describes the findings of a three-year evaluation into a mathematics professional development programme. The programme is designed around improving teachers' mathematical knowledge for teaching, helping them to engage pupils’ critical thinking and reasoning during maths lessons.
The study focused specifically on helping teachers to learn more mathematics; understand how pupils learn maths; the best ways to use formative evaluations to assess pupils’ learning needs; and how to develop teaching practices that effectively enhance pupils’ problem solving skills.
The researchers found some evidence of positive impacts on teachers' mathematical knowledge, but this was limited, and found no evidence that teachers’ participation in the programme improved their teaching or pupils’ learning.
Methodology
CPD Opportunities
An academic paper evaluating a professional development programme that claims to improve teachers’ mathematical knowledge. This may interest STEM teachers, and education professionals with responsibility for CPD.