Case 11: Exploring A Teacher Candidate’S Impediments to and Experiences Of Orchestrating Mathematical Discourse In Student Teaching

Effective mathematics teaching promotes students’ exchanges of mathematical ideas that lead to analyzing and comparing different approaches and arguments to develop shared knowledge (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics [NCTM], 2014). Engaging students in productive mathematical discussions requires encouraging students to voice their ideas, analyze their peers’ ideas, and decide on a common understanding. Sustaining such a learning environment might be challenging for traditional classrooms. At this point, exploring what teachers experience in promoting mathematical discourse might be at the heart of our understanding of ensuring mathematical success. This case focuses on a teacher candidate’s experiences facilitating meaningful mathematical discourse, giving an insight into the hindrances and enablers of her attempts to orchestrate meaningful discourse.