2: Using K-12 Mathematics Curriculum Materials in Teacher Education: Rationale, Strategies, and Preservice Teachers’ Experiences¹

Teachers engaged in current mathematics education reforms attempt to establish classrooms in which students engage actively and cooperatively in exploration and discussion to solve rich problems and reason mathematically (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics [NCTM], 1989, 2000). To support the vision of mathematics instruction presented in the 1989 Standards document, a dozen or more federally-funded projects developed novel curriculum materials during the 1990s. Students’ problem-solving abilities and conceptual understandings of mathematics appear to be impacted positively by the use of these materials (Senk & Thompson, 2003). Because they are a source of mathematically rich problems and instructional activities, these materials may also give rise to potent opportunities for teachers to learn (Ball & Cohen, 1996). Although many reports have illustrated the challenges faced by teachers when implementing Standards-based materials (Frykholm, 2004; Lambdin & Preston, 1995; Lloyd, 1999; Manoucheri & Goodman, 1998; Wilson & Lloyd, 2000), research also has offered images of teachers learning about mathematics and pedagogy while using these materials (Lloyd, 2002a; Remillard, 2000; Van Zoest & Bohl, 2002).