Chapter 4: Why are You Asking For These Impossible Math Lessons?:

In this case I share an all-too-common dilemma for mathematics teacher educators teaching university-based courses—that of prospective teachers questioning course assignments that run counter to dominant teaching practices they are observing in their school field placements. In this case I invite the reader to think about how they might respond to prospective teachers’ push back on course assignments that require them to design and teach lessons that embody principles of ambitious and equitable mathematics teaching.

At the time of the particular incident I share here I had a collection of well-rehearsed teacher educator responses, such as: “You do not need a degree from MSU to teach students how to complete worksheets,” “We are purposefully focusing on practices that are hard to learn alone and on the job,” and other variations of these kinds of statements. However, these responses seemed insufficient to address the questions from a prospective teacher who seemed really distressed about my course’s expectation that they plan and teach high-quality mathematics lessons regardless of who and where they were teaching.