Page 18 - Children’s mathematical development and learning needs in perspective of teachers’ use of dynamic math interviews

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Chapter 1
use of effective mathematical classroom practices, including: whole class discussion, use of a range of representations and tools, making informed decisions about what to do to meet children’s learning needs, and highlighting connections across different mathematical topics (Anthony & Walshaw, 2009; Hiebert, & Grouws, 2007; Kyriakides et al., 2013). Especially when it comes to adapting their teaching to the different needs of the children in their classrooms, teachers must be able to monitor child progress, understand a child’s learning needs, and have the knowledge and skills needed to adapt their lessons. Such attunement requires advanced professional teaching skills and mathematical knowledge for teaching (Deunk et al., 2018; Hill et al., 2008; Prast et al., 2015).
The professional competencies of teachers can be divided into cognitive factors (e.g., mathematical knowledge for teaching) and professional beliefs (e.g., positive self-efficacy for the teaching of mathematics, motivation) (Blömeke et al., 2015; Döhrmann et al., 2012; Kaiser et al., 2017). In a number of studies, three key components of the teaching of mathematics have been shown to be associated with children’s mathematics achievement: actual teaching behavior during mathematics lessons (Hiebert & Grouws, 2007; Stronge et al., 2011), teacher’s mathematical knowledge for teaching (Campbell et al., 2014; Hill et al., 2005), and teacher’s perceptions of their own self-efficacy for the teaching of mathematics (Perera & John, 2020; Tella, 2008).
Mathematics teaching behavior
With regard to the associations between mathematics teaching behavior and children’s mathematical development, different aspects have been examined. In some studies, the manner of classroom management, attention to math concepts/misconceptions, use of interactive and activating teaching methods, and supply of individualized support have all been shown to contribute to children’s mathematics achievement (Muijs & Reynolds, 2002, 2011; Stronge et al., 2011). Blazar (2015) found inquiry-oriented instruction but not classroom management or emotional support to relate to mathematics achievement. Review results showed domain-specific learning activities, time for learning, and differentiation/ adaptive instruction to all positively correlate with