The need to improve the mathematical proficiency of elementary teachers is well recognized, and it has long been of interest to educators and researchers in the U.S. and many other countries. But the specific proficiencies that elementary teachers need and the process of developing and improving them remain only partially conceptualized and not well validated empirically. To improve this situation, national workshops were organized at Texas A&M University to generate focused discussions about this important topic, with participation of mathematicians, mathematics educators and teachers. Developing Mathematical Proficiency for Elementary Instruction is a collection of articles that grew out of those exciting cross-disciplinary exchanges. Developing Mathematical Proficiency for Elementary Instruction is organized to probe the specifics of mathematical proficiency that are important to elementary teachers during two separate but inter-connected professional stages: as pre-service teachers in a preparation program, and as in-service teachers teaching mathematics in elementary classrooms. From this rich and inspiring collection, readers may better understand, and possibly rethink, their own practices and research in empowering elementary teachers mathematically and pedagogically, as educators or researchers.

This book surveys and examines different approaches and practices that contribute to the changes in mathematics instruction, including (1) innovative approaches that bring direct changes in classroom instructional practices, (2) curriculum reforms that introduce changes in content and requirements in classroom instruction, and (3) approaches in mathematics teacher education that aim to improve teachers expertise and practices. It also surveys relevant theory and methodology development in studying and assessing mathematics instruction.

Classroom instruction is commonly seen as one of the key factors contributing to students learning of mathematics, but much remains to be understood about teachers instructional practices that lead to the development and enactment of effective classroom instruction, and approaches and practices developed and used to transform classroom instruction in different education systems.

Transforming Mathematics Instruction is organized to help readers learn not only from reading individual chapters, but also from reading across chapters and sections to explore broader themes, including:

- Identifying what is important in mathematics for teaching and learning emphasized in different approaches;

- Exploring how students learning is considered and facilitated through different approaches and practices;

- Understanding the nature of various approaches that are valued in different systems and cultural contexts;

- Probing culturally valued approaches in identifying and evaluating effective instructional practices.

The book brings new research and insights into multiple approaches and practices for transforming mathematics instruction to the international community of mathematics education, with 25 chapters and four section prefaces contributed by 56 scholars from 10 different education systems. This rich collection is indispensable reading for mathematics educators, researchers, teacher educators, curriculum developers, and graduate students interested in learning about different instructional practices, approaches for instructional transformation, and research in different education systems.

It will help readers to reflect on approaches and practices that are useful for instructional changes in their own education systems, and also inspire them to identify and further explore new areas of research and program development in improving mathematics teaching and learning.

"

This book provides a platform for international scholars to share evidence for effective practices in integrated STEM education and contributes to the theoretical and practical knowledge gained from the diversity of approaches. Many publications on STEM education focus on one or two of the separate STEM disciplines without considering the potential for delivering STEM curriculum as an integrated approach.This publication analyzes the efficacy of an integrated STEM curriculum and instruction, providing evidence to examine and support various integrations. The volume focuses on the problems seen by academics working in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and provides valuable, high quality research outcomes and a set of valued practices which have demonstrated their use and viability to improve the quality of integrated STEM education.

Mathematics curriculum, which is often a focus in education reforms, has not received extensive research attention until recently. Ongoing mathematics curriculum changes in many education systems call for further research and sharing of effective curriculum policies and practices that can help lead to the improvement of school education.

This book provides a unique international perspective on diverse curriculum issues and practices in different education systems, offering a comprehensive picture of various stages along curriculum transformation from the intended to the achieved, and showing how curriculum changes in various stages contribute to mathematics teaching and learning in different educational systems and cultural contexts.

The book is organized to help readers learn not only from reading individual chapters, but also from reading across chapters and sections to explore broader themes, including: Identifying what is important in mathematics for teaching and learning in different education systems;Understanding mathematics curriculum and its changes that are valued over time in different education systems; Identifying and analyzing effective curriculum practices;Probing effective infrastructure for curriculum development and implementation.

"Mathematics Curriculum in School Education" brings new insights into curriculum policies and practices to the international community of mathematics education, with 29 chapters and four section prefaces contributed by 56 scholars from 14 different education systems. This rich collection is indispensable reading for mathematics educators, researchers, curriculum developers, and graduate students interested in learning about recent curriculum development, research, and practices in different education systems.

It will help readers to reflect on curriculum policies and practices in their own education systems, and also inspire them to identify and further explore new areas of curriculum research for improving mathematics teaching and learning.

This book is inspired by Roger E. Howe's contributions to the international communities of mathematics and mathematics education. Renowned for his research contributions in the fields of representation theory, automorphic forms, harmonic analysis, and invariant theory, Dr. Howe has also fundamentally deepened our understanding of the mathematics taught in the early school grades and has challenged and stimulated mathematicians and mathematics educators to work together to examine this part of the mathematical universe more critically and in imaginative new ways. This volume will help summarize and highlight Howe's contributions to several topic areas in mathematics education, demonstrating the possibility and importance of engaging mathematicians in high-impact research in mathematics education, and showcasing the importance of cross-disciplinary collaboration and exchange.

How Chinese Teach Mathematics and Improve Teaching builds upon existing studies to examine mathematics classroom instruction in China. It combines contributions from Chinese scholars with commentary from key Western scholars to offer multiple perspectives in viewing and learning about some important and distinctive features of mathematics classroom instruction. Viewing classroom instruction as part of teachers instructional practices, this book goes beyond teachers in-classroom instructional practice by also examining Chinese teachers approaches and practices in developing and improving teaching. Through this unique approach, How Chinese Teach Mathematics and Improve Teaching expands and unpacks the otherwise fragmented knowledge about Chinese practices in developing and carrying out mathematics classroom instruction.

This book is indispensible reading for those interested in Chinese practices in mathematics teaching, and is a key book for teacher educators, school administrators and policy makers in expanding ways of supporting and helping mathematics teachers in instructional development and improvement.

Accumulated research findings in past decades have led to the common knowledge that teachers' professional knowledge is essential to effective classroom instruction. However, there is still very limited understanding about the nature of teachers' expertise in mathematics instruction. Expertise in Mathematics Instruction addresses this need clearly and concisely. In particular, it examines all aspects of emphases employed to characterize the nature of expertise in mathematics instruction from both researchers' and practitioners' perspectives. Moreover, with research contributions from both the East and the West, this book also examines ideas pertinent to fostering and demonstrating expertise in mathematics instruction within different system contexts. This book will raise questions and issues for mathematics education researchers to guide a critical examination of what can be learned from other education systems.

Expertise in Mathematics Instruction builds on its theoretical and methodological approach with contributions from international experts in the field. Additionally, a review of related research from mathematics education serves as an introduction to the new research in both Eastern and Western settings. Concluding this resource is a reflection on the benefits of this international collaboration and possible research directions for the future. The final chapter cohesively joins traditional and current research for action.

Expertise in Mathematics Instruction is of interest to researchers in mathematics education, mathematics teacher educators, and mathematics educators.

The need to improve the mathematical proficiency of elementary teachers is well recognized, and it has long been of interest to educators and researchers in the U.S. and many other countries. But the specific proficiencies that elementary teachers need and the process of developing and improving them remain only partially conceptualized and not well validated empirically. To improve this situation, national workshops were organized at Texas A&M University to generate focused discussions about this important topic, with participation of mathematicians, mathematics educators and teachers. Developing Mathematical Proficiency for Elementary Instruction is a collection of articles that grew out of those exciting cross-disciplinary exchanges. Developing Mathematical Proficiency for Elementary Instruction is organized to probe the specifics of mathematical proficiency that are important to elementary teachers during two separate but inter-connected professional stages: as pre-service teachers in a preparation program, and as in-service teachers teaching mathematics in elementary classrooms. From this rich and inspiring collection, readers may better understand, and possibly rethink, their own practices and research in empowering elementary teachers mathematically and pedagogically, as educators or researchers.

This book provides a platform for international scholars to share evidence for effective practices in integrated STEM education and contributes to the theoretical and practical knowledge gained from the diversity of approaches. Many publications on STEM education focus on one or two of the separate STEM disciplines without considering the potential for delivering STEM curriculum as an integrated approach.This publication analyzes the efficacy of an integrated STEM curriculum and instruction, providing evidence to examine and support various integrations. The volume focuses on the problems seen by academics working in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and provides valuable, high quality research outcomes and a set of valued practices which have demonstrated their use and viability to improve the quality of integrated STEM education.

Mathematics curriculum, which is often a focus in education reforms, has not received extensive research attention until recently. Ongoing mathematics curriculum changes in many education systems call for further research and sharing of effective curriculum policies and practices that can help lead to the improvement of school education. This book provides a unique international perspective on diverse curriculum issues and practices in different education systems, offering a comprehensive picture of various stages along curriculum transformation from the intended to the achieved, and showing how curriculum changes in various stages contribute to mathematics teaching and learning in different educational systems and cultural contexts. The book is organized to help readers learn not only from reading individual chapters, but also from reading across chapters and sections to explore broader themes, including: Identifying what is important in mathematics for teaching and learning in different education systems; Understanding mathematics curriculum and its changes that are valued over time in different education systems; Identifying and analyzing effective curriculum practices; Probing effective infrastructure for curriculum development and implementation. Mathematics Curriculum in School Education brings new insights into curriculum policies and practices to the international community of mathematics education, with 29 chapters and four section prefaces contributed by 56 scholars from 14 different education systems. This rich collection is indispensable reading for mathematics educators, researchers, curriculum developers, and graduate students interested in learning about recent curriculum development, research, and practices in different education systems. It will help readers to reflect on curriculum policies and practices in their own education systems, and also inspire them to identify and further explore new areas of curriculum research for improving mathematics teaching and learning.

This book surveys and examines different approaches and practices that contribute to the changes in mathematics instruction, including (1) innovative approaches that bring direct changes in classroom instructional practices, (2) curriculum reforms that introduce changes in content and requirements in classroom instruction, and (3) approaches in mathematics teacher education that aim to improve teachers’ expertise and practices. It also surveys relevant theory and methodology development in studying and assessing mathematics instruction. Classroom instruction is commonly seen as one of the key factors contributing to students’ learning of mathematics, but much remains to be understood about teachers’ instructional practices that lead to the development and enactment of effective classroom instruction, and approaches and practices developed and used to transform classroom instruction in different education systems. Transforming Mathematics Instruction is organized to help readers learn not only from reading individual chapters, but also from reading across chapters and sections to explore broader themes, including: - Identifying what is important in mathematics for teaching and learning emphasized in different approaches; - Exploring how students’ learning is considered and facilitated through different approaches and practices; - Understanding the nature of various approaches that are valued in different systems and cultural contexts; - Probing culturally valued approaches in identifying and evaluating effective instructional practices. The book brings new research and insights into multiple approaches and practices for transforming mathematics instruction to the international community of mathematics education, with 25 chapters and four section prefaces contributed by 56 scholars from 10 different education systems. This rich collection is indispensable reading for mathematics educators, researchers, teacher educators, curriculum developers, and graduate students interested in learning about different instructional practices, approaches for instructional transformation, and research in different education systems. It will help readers to reflect on approaches and practices that are useful for instructional changes in their own education systems, and also inspire them to identify and further explore new areas of research and program development in improving mathematics teaching and learning.  

Accumulated research findings in past decades have led to the common knowledge that teachers' professional knowledge is essential to effective classroom instruction. However, there is still very limited understanding about the nature of teachers' expertise in mathematics instruction. Expertise in Mathematics Instruction addresses this need clearly and concisely. In particular, it examines all aspects of emphases employed to characterize the nature of expertise in mathematics instruction from both researchers' and practitioners' perspectives. Moreover, with research contributions from both the East and the West, this book also examines ideas pertinent to fostering and demonstrating expertise in mathematics instruction within different system contexts. This book will raise questions and issues for mathematics education researchers to guide a critical examination of what can be learned from other education systems. Expertise in Mathematics Instruction builds on its theoretical and methodological approach with contributions from international experts in the field. Additionally, a review of related research from mathematics education serves as an introduction to the new research in both Eastern and Western settings. Concluding this resource is a reflection on the benefits of this international collaboration and possible research directions for the future. The final chapter cohesively joins traditional and current research for action. Expertise in Mathematics Instruction is of interest to researchers in mathematics education, mathematics teacher educators, and mathematics educators.

How Chinese Teach Mathematics and Improve Teaching builds upon existing studies to examine mathematics classroom instruction in China. It combines contributions from Chinese scholars with commentary from key Western scholars to offer a truly systematic examination of some important and distinctive features of mathematics classroom instruction. Viewing classroom instruction as part of teachers' instructional practices, this book goes beyond teachers' in-classroom instructional practice by also examining Chinese teachers' approaches and practices in developing and improving teaching. Through this unique approach, How Chinese Teach Mathematics and Improve Teaching expands and unpacks the otherwise fragmented knowledge about Chinese practices in developing and carrying out mathematics classroom instruction.