Chapter 15: Developing Teachers of Black Children: (Re)Orienting Thinking in an Elementary Mathematics Methods Course

The research reported in this chapter is part of a larger research project, Teachers Empowered to Advance CHange in Mathematics (TEACH MATH), aimed at transforming preK–8 mathematics teacher preparation so that new generations of mathematics teachers will be equipped with powerful tools and strategies to increase mathematics learning and achievement in our nation’s increasingly diverse public schools (Turner et al., 2012). This is not to say that the efforts of this project, or even efforts within an entire elementary mathematics methods course, are sufficient for the preparation of highly qualified teachers. Learning to teach is a complex process. Expertise in teaching does not develop within a short teacher education program (Berliner, 1994; Hammerness, Darling-Hammond, & Bransford, 2005), but rather develops over time as teachers learn from various sources, including their own teaching experiences (Hiebert, Morris, Berk, & Jansen, 2007). Nonetheless, we focus on teacher preparation as we believe it is important to intervene early in supporting mathematics teachers’ development.