Sustaining Lesson Study: Resources and Factors that Support and Constrain Mathematics Teachers' Ability to Continue After the Grant Ends
Year: 2015
Type: dissertation
Abstract: Lesson study, a teacher-led vehicle for inquiring into teacher practice through\ncreating, enacting, and reflecting on collaboratively designed research lessons, has\nbeen shown to improve mathematics teacher practice in the United States, such as\nimproving knowledge about mathematics, changing teacher practice, and developing\ncommunities of teachers. Though it has been described as a sustainable form of\nprofessional development, little research exists on what might support teachers in\ncontinuing to engage in lesson study after a grant ends. This qualitative and multixxi\ncase study investigates the sustainability of lesson study as mathematics teachers\nengage in a district scale-up lesson study professional experience after participating in\na three-year California Mathematics Science Partnership (CaMSP) grant to improve\nalgebraic instruction. To do so, I first provide a description of material (e.g. curricular\nmaterials and time), human (attending district trainings and interacting with\nmathematics coaches), and social (qualities like trust, shared values, common goals,\nand expectations developed through relationships with others) resources present in the\ncontext of two school districts as reported by participants. I then describe practices of\nlesson study reported to have continued. I also report on teachers??? conceptions of what\nit means to engage in lesson study. I conclude by describing how these results suggest\nfactors that supported and constrained teachers??? in continuing lesson study.\nTo accomplish this work, I used qualitative methods of grounded theory\ninformed by a modified sustainability framework on interview, survey, and case study\ndata about teachers, principals, and Teachers on Special Assignment (TOSAs). Four\ncases were selected to show the varying levels of lesson study practices that continued\npast the conclusion of the grant. Analyses reveal varying levels of integration, linkage,\nand synergy among both formally and informally arranged groups of teachers. High\nlevels of integration and linkage among groups of teachers supported them in\nsustaining lesson study practices. Groups of teachers with low levels of integration but\nwith linked individuals sustained some level of practices, whereas teachers with low\nlevels of integration and linkage constrained them in continuing lesson study at their\nsite. Additionally, teachers??? visions of lesson study and its uses shaped the types of\nxxii activities teachers engaged, with well-developed conceptions of lesson study\nsupporting and limited visions constraining the ability to attract or align resources to\ncontinue lesson study practices. Principals??? support, teacher autonomy, and cultures of\ncollaboration or isolation were also factors that either supported or constrained\nteachers??? ability to continue lesson study. These analyses provide practical\nimplications on how to support mathematics teachers in continuing lesson study, and\ntheoretical contributions on developing the construct of sustainability within\nmathematics education research.
Author: Bridget K. Druken
Language: English
Subfield: Education
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Quality education
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2346124584