Page 43 - Children’s mathematical development and learning needs in perspective of teachers’ use of dynamic math interviews

Impact of child and teacher factors on mathematical development
group-based teaching positively influenced achievement for a range of mathematical skills. In another study, Muijs and Reynolds (2002) found effective teacher behavior (e.g., interactive mathematics teaching, direct instruction), positive self-efficacy beliefs, and good subject knowledge to significantly correlate with children’s mathematics achievement. Noteworthy, they found constructivist mathematics teaching to negatively correlate with mathematical development. In other research, Wenglinsky (2000) concluded that the use of hands-on learning activities to illustrate mathematical concepts and stimulate higher-order thinking skills can promote mathematics achievement. Hiebert and Grouws (2007) concluded, based on their review, that teacher behavior is effective if teachers are explicit about learning goals, make their teaching behavior dependent on the mathematical learning goal, and foster engagement particularly on the part of children who are struggling with mathematics. Teaching behavior that facilitates the development of understanding of mathematical concepts and makes the connections between ideas, facts, and procedures sufficiently explicit was found to be important for children’s mathematical development (e.g., interactive instruction, think-stimulating activities, comparison of solution strategies, critical thinking). A meta-analysis focusing on teaching factors related to children’s outcomes (Kyriakides et al., 2013) showed children’s achievement to not be associated with a single teaching approach (e.g., direct vs. constructivist instruction); making well-considered choices and adoption of elements of different approaches were found to be crucial instead.
In observational research specifically concerned with the influences of teacher behavior on arithmetic fluency, Kling and Bay-Williams (2014) found giving children opportunities to notice relationships, adopt strategies, and practice with these strategies to promote arithmetic fluency. Muijs and Reynolds (2000) found active, whole- class teaching that clearly involves children to be associated with better achievement in arithmetic fluency. Teacher behaviors considered together, moreover, explained the basic mathematics achievement of children while individual teacher behaviors did not (e.g., organization, time spent on interactive teaching).
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