A3 Book section, Chapters in research books
Teacher Guidance in Mathematical Problem-Solving Lessons : Insights from Two Professional Development Programs (2019)

Hähkiöniemi, M., & Francisco, J. (2019). Teacher Guidance in Mathematical Problem-Solving Lessons : Insights from Two Professional Development Programs. In P. Felmer, P. Liljedahl, & B. Koichu (Eds.), Problem Solving in Mathematics Instruction and Teacher Professional Development (pp. 279-296). Springer. Research in Mathematics Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-29215-7_15

JYU authors or editors

Publication details

All authors or editors: Hähkiöniemi, Markus; Francisco, John

Parent publication: Problem Solving in Mathematics Instruction and Teacher Professional Development

Parent publication editors: Felmer, Patricio; Liljedahl, Peter; Koichu, Boris

ISBN: 978-3-030-29214-0

eISBN: 978-3-030-29215-7

Journal or series: Research in Mathematics Education

ISSN: 2570-4729

eISSN: 2570-4737

Publication year: 2019

Pages range: 279-296

Number of pages in the book: 410

Publisher: Springer

Place of Publication: Cham

Publication country: Switzerland

Publication language: English

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-29215-7_15

Publication open access: Not open

Publication channel open access: 

Publication is parallel published (JYX): https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/66819

Abstract

When implementing a problem-solving lesson, the teacher needs to provide students appropriate guidance during problem solving. This demanding task requires understanding students’ work in progress and giving them necessary help without constraining their thinking. In this article, we share insights from two professional development programs on how teachers guided students’ problem solving and how they reflected on these instances. One of the programs included Finnish pre-service teachers, while the other program included US in-service teachers. We analyzed video-recorded problem-solving lessons from 16 Finnish and 2 US teachers in grades 6–9. We found two themes about teacher guidance of student problem-solving activity: focusing students’ thinking on something and emphasizing justification. In the first theme, the teachers’ ways to guide students differed depending on how much space they allowed for students’ thinking and how much their guidance actually helped the students to focus on the targeted issue. In the second theme, we identified two patterns: asking repeatedly for justification and helping to build a justification. The elaboration on the themes is supported with the analysis of the teachers’ reflection related to the themes.

Keywords: mathematics teachers; professional development; problem-based learning; teacher training

Free keywords: guidance; inquiry; mathematics teaching; problem solving; teacher education

Contributing organizations

Related projects

Ministry reporting: Yes

Reporting Year: 2019

JUFO rating: 2