Mathematics Teachers' On-the-Job Learning: A Synthesis of Research and Conceptual Frameworks

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How do practicing mathematics teachers continue to develop the knowledge and habits of mind that enable them to teach well and to improve their teaching over time? This question about how (and what) teachers learn "on the job" lies at the crux of any effort to provide high-quality teachers for U.S. students. Over the past 25 years, a substantial literature on mathematics teachers' knowledge has accumulated, including research on teacher beliefs, teacher knowledge, teacher change, teacher decision-making, and teacher self-efficacy and identity. This project will provide an accounting of the developments in the field, synthesizing the evidence about the kinds of experiences that promote and sustain the development of teachers. The project involves a strategic review of literature in mathematics education, while drawing on related theories of motivation, self-regulation, identity and efficacy from the disciplines psychology, cognitive science, and sociology. The review is guided by a conceptual framework that characterizes different domains that constitute the environment of teacher's professional growth. The PIs' goal is to help shape the agenda for future research by identifying those aspects of teacher learning that the field has firmly established, those aspects which bear further investigation, and those aspects about which the field currently knows little, but which are likely to be important for developing a full picture of teachers' on-the-job learning.