Professional development for digital technology task design by secondary mathematics teachers
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ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Professional development for digital technology task design by secondary mathematics teachers Iresha Ratnayake1 · Mike Thomas2 · Barbara Kensington‑Miller2 Accepted: 29 June 2020 © FIZ Karlsruhe 2020
Abstract A crucial step in improving the use of digital technology (DT) for learning mathematical concepts in the classroom appears to be increasing teacher involvement in task development. Hence, this research considered the effect of a professional development (PD) programme designed to assist teachers with DT task production for implementation in their classrooms. Four groups of three Sri Lankan teachers were observed and guided as they designed and implemented DT tasks. We examine the effectiveness of the PD programme in terms of the richness of the tasks produced by the groups before and after the PD. The results suggest the intervention led to richer, more student-centred tasks. The reasons behind this improvement are analysed, along with factors that might have influenced the DT task development. The findings have implications for the design of secondary school PD programmes and may help educators to facilitate the training of mathematics teachers in the use of DT. Keywords Digital technology · Teacher professional development · Task · Collaboration
1 Introduction
2 Literature review
This paper details the outcomes of a professional development (PD) programme designed to assist teachers working in small groups on digital technology (DT) task production. First we review some of the relevant literature on teacher PD and then consider the design of mathematics tasks that employ DT use. The theoretical frameworks that underpin the study are also presented. Although, at 4 days, it was of quite short duration, this is in line with standard PD for teachers who cannot leave classes for long. The novel nature of the PD used here is presented, along with its links to the supporting theory, along with results of a detailed analysis based on an original framework to demonstrate its effectiveness and provide implications for further research.
2.1 Teacher professional development In general, PD for teachers is necessary and important, offering opportunities to reduce a perceived gap between theory and practice (Kayi-Aydar & Goering, 2019) and to produce positive changes in beliefs, knowledge, skills or behaviours (Lauer, Christopher, Firpo-Triplett, & Buchting, 2013). However, effective PD, according to Lauer et al. (2013), should not only focus on content but also involve active learning opportunities and collective participation. The forms of PD most likely to have a positive sustainable impact include learning activities that involve participants in acquiring, using and evaluating new knowledge, and allow sufficient time for topic complexity, group discussion, active learning tasks, examples with direct application to participants’ work setting, and follow-up support (Lauer et al., 2013; Zehetmeier & Krainer, 2011).
2.2 Design of DT tasks by mathematics teachers * Mike Thomas moj.thomas@auckla
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