PROCEEDINGS OF THE 21ST ANNUAL CONFERENCE ON RESEARCH IN UNDERGRADUATE MATHEMATICS EDUCATION
2018
San Diego, California
Factors Supporting (or Constraining) the Implementation of DNR-based Instruction in Mathematics
Page: 1076
DNR-based instruction in mathematics (Harel, 2008a, 2008b, 2008c) is a theoretical framework for the learning and teaching of mathematics. DNR-based professional development is a long-running program spanning seven years with multiple cohorts of in-service secondary mathematics teacher participants. This report investigates teacher change among five key variables: facilitating public debate, using holistic problems, attending to students’ intellectual need, attending to the meaning of quantities and use of students’ contributions. Commitment to change and perseverance, the nature of available curricular materials and teachers’ view of the role of curriculum, a view of students as partners in knowledge construction, institutional context, collaboration and content knowledge were identified as factors that afford or constrain DNR implementation. This work has implications for the design of future professional development efforts and the development of a more robust theory of teacher change.