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Classroom Culture, Mathematics Culture, and the Failures of Reform: The Need for a Collective View of Culture

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Title: Classroom Culture, Mathematics Culture, and the Failures of Reform: The Need for a Collective View of Culture
Language: English
Authors: Gill, Michele Gregoire, Boote, David
Source: Teachers College Record. 2012 114(12).
Availability: Teachers College, Columbia University. P.O. Box 103, 525 West 120th Street, New York, NY 10027. Tel: 212-678-3774; Fax: 212-678-6619; e-mail: tcr@tc.edu; Web site: http://www.tcrecord.org
Peer Reviewed: Y
Physical Description: PDF
Page Count: 45
Publication Date: 2012
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Education Level: Grade 8
Middle Schools
Descriptors: Teacher Effectiveness, Teaching Methods, Educational Change, Language Usage, Mathematics Education, School Culture, Textbooks, Mathematics Teachers, Values, Problem Solving, Ethnography, Goal Orientation, Evaluation Methods, Secondary School Mathematics, Grade 8, Teacher Attitudes
ISSN: 1467-9620
Abstract: Background/Context: Despite the tremendous amount of effort devoted by many mathematics educators to promote, defend, and implement reform-based mathematics education, procedural mathematics, which locates mathematical correctness in the procedures learned from textbooks and teachers, persists. Many researchers have identified school and classroom culture as the source of the problem; however, the exact meaning of school culture and its influence on teachers' practices remains unclear. What is needed is a clearer understanding of classroom culture and how it influences practice. Purpose: The purpose of our study was to examine how the aspects of a culture reinforce each other (and how they resist aspects alien to the cultural system) to understand the sui generis nature of culture. We use five aspects or indicators of culture--language usage, standard practices, tools and equipment usage, ongoing concerns and values, and recurring problems--to describe how they work together to create a culture. Population/Participants/Subjects: The primary participant in this study was an eighth-grade mathematics teacher renowned for being a good teacher whose teaching conformed to the intentions of the reform-oriented National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) standards, with a particular emphasis on problem solving. Research Design: An ethnographic case study was conducted. Conclusions/Recommendations: Although Ms. Bryans appropriated some of the rhetoric and practices of reform mathematics, her goals and assessment methods and most of her instructional methods were inconsistent. The analysis of the case shows that three conceptions of culture--individual, interactive, and collective--lead to quite different understandings of the problem. This case suggests the importance of differentiating each of these three conceptions of culture and discusses their implications for educational reform policies and professional development efforts.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2013
Access URL: https://www.tcrecord.org/Content.asp?ContentId=16718
Accession Number: EJ1002000
Database: ERIC
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  Data: Classroom Culture, Mathematics Culture, and the Failures of Reform: The Need for a Collective View of Culture
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22Teachers+College+Record%22"><i>Teachers College Record</i></searchLink>. 2012 114(12).
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  Data: Teachers College, Columbia University. P.O. Box 103, 525 West 120th Street, New York, NY 10027. Tel: 212-678-3774; Fax: 212-678-6619; e-mail: tcr@tc.edu; Web site: http://www.tcrecord.org
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  Data: Background/Context: Despite the tremendous amount of effort devoted by many mathematics educators to promote, defend, and implement reform-based mathematics education, procedural mathematics, which locates mathematical correctness in the procedures learned from textbooks and teachers, persists. Many researchers have identified school and classroom culture as the source of the problem; however, the exact meaning of school culture and its influence on teachers' practices remains unclear. What is needed is a clearer understanding of classroom culture and how it influences practice. Purpose: The purpose of our study was to examine how the aspects of a culture reinforce each other (and how they resist aspects alien to the cultural system) to understand the sui generis nature of culture. We use five aspects or indicators of culture--language usage, standard practices, tools and equipment usage, ongoing concerns and values, and recurring problems--to describe how they work together to create a culture. Population/Participants/Subjects: The primary participant in this study was an eighth-grade mathematics teacher renowned for being a good teacher whose teaching conformed to the intentions of the reform-oriented National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) standards, with a particular emphasis on problem solving. Research Design: An ethnographic case study was conducted. Conclusions/Recommendations: Although Ms. Bryans appropriated some of the rhetoric and practices of reform mathematics, her goals and assessment methods and most of her instructional methods were inconsistent. The analysis of the case shows that three conceptions of culture--individual, interactive, and collective--lead to quite different understandings of the problem. This case suggests the importance of differentiating each of these three conceptions of culture and discusses their implications for educational reform policies and professional development efforts.
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      – Text: English
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        PageCount: 45
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Teacher Effectiveness
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Teaching Methods
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      – SubjectFull: Educational Change
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      – SubjectFull: Language Usage
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      – SubjectFull: Mathematics Education
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      – SubjectFull: School Culture
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      – SubjectFull: Textbooks
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      – SubjectFull: Mathematics Teachers
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      – SubjectFull: Values
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