Case 7: Teacher Talk Moves For Some, Teacher Talk Moves For All

This case highlights one of the Standards for Mathematical Principles formulated by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) that requires students to “take an active role in offering conjectures, responding to one another’s ideas and defending and justifying their ideas and opinions” (Spillane & Zeuli, 1999, p. 5). This case comes from a larger research study that explored the impact of teacher talk moves during standards-based mathematics instruction for students with disabilities. We were particularly interested in how to “facilitate meaningful mathematical discourse” (NCTM, 2014) to support teachers in their clinical practices. We compared five elementary (K–6) special education teachers as they progressed through their 2-year participation in standards-based mathematics professional development. This development training was positioned as professional learning (Scherff, 2018) and featured active learning, job-embedded components, and coaching (Labone & Long, 2016). Our case, based on this research, features current teachers of both general education and special education students in support of the notion that effective mathematics teaching practices are possible for students of all learning profiles. The type of “teacher talk” we describe is crucial to developing student achievement in mathematics for all students.