THEORETICAL LENSES TO DEVELOP MATHEMATICS TEACHER NOTICING: Learning, Teaching, Psychological, and Social Perspectives

Abstract

To teach mathematics effectively, teachers should learn to notice students’ mathematical thinking, adapting their instruction to support their students’ conceptual learning. Mathematics teacher noticing has been conceptualised as a skill that allows teachers to recognise important events in a classroom and decide on effective instructional responses. Research on the development of teacher noticing in different contexts has demonstrated the challenges teacher educators face when supporting prospective and practicing teachers to notice relevant instructional details. In particular, teachers may not be able to notice productively when they are not focused in their noticing. In this chapter, we highlight from our research theoretical lenses from three perspectives to focus prospective and practicing teachers’ attention on important instructional details during teacher development processes. First, we examine how theoretical lenses from the learning perspective, such as learning trajectories, can provide teachers a structured framework that support them in identifying learning goals, interpreting students’ mathematical thinking, and deciding on appropriate instructional details. Next, we present the use of lenses from the teaching perspective, such as the ‘Three-Point Framework’, to guide teachers in their noticing as they learn about their own teaching. Thirdly, we report on various eclectic approaches of using theoretical lenses from other psychological or social perspectives to develop teacher noticing. Finally, we conclude by suggesting possible implications for future research and development efforts to improve teacher noticing.