Page 190 - Children’s mathematical development and learning needs in perspective of teachers’ use of dynamic math interviews

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Chapter 6
schools spread across the Netherlands. A major strength is the large and representative sample size of children of grade 4. Furthermore, in this research several tools were created: a teacher professional development program focusing on dynamic math interviewing, a scripted tool to support the conduct of dynamic math interviewing in all domains of mathematics (Kaskens, 2016, 2018) and a framework to facilitate the qualitative analysis of the dynamic math interviews (Appendix C). Furthermore, a scale supplemented to the International Comparative Analysis of Learning and Teaching (Appendix A) and a measure for teachers' sense of their mathematical knowledge for teaching are developed the Teachers’ Sense of Mathematical Knowledge for Teaching Questionnaire (Appendix B).
The quasi-experimental study design used in the present research had the advantage of involving the same teachers over time and therefore control for variables that might otherwise influence the reliability of the data (e.g., possible cohort effects and extended variability in teaching style could be ruled out). However, there was no control group in the present research. Replication with the inclusion of a control group and thus participation of a larger number of teachers is therefore recommended for the future.
Only quantitative measures were used to assess children’s arithmetic fluency and mathematical problem-solving in the present research. Use of more process-oriented, qualitative measures (e.g., observation, analyzing of worked out strategies, think-alouds) might have provided greater insight into the approaches and strategies used by the children for a given task (Kotsopoulos & Lee, 2012; Ostad, 2000). Similarly for the assessment of teacher characteristics and competencies, the use of exclusively quantitative methods may not have captured all aspects or the richness of their mathematics teaching. Aspects of the interpersonal interaction between the teacher and child may have been missed (e.g., pay attention, appropriate responsiveness, type of feedback). The use of specific mathematics terminology by the teachers that is crucial to children’s understanding and encourages children to correctly use the mathematical vocabulary, may have been missed. The manner in which the teacher responds when a child adopts an alternative approach to solve a given problem but also the teacher actually meeting