EDUC 659 Methods of Teaching Middle School Math Tom Gebbie

Module 1 - Act 3 - Teaching Mathematics in the 21st Century

When using Danielson as a guide for how a teacher operates in the classroom I have a tendency to see the

different parts of teaching as off-stage (planning and preparation) and on-stage (environment and instruction).

Looking through the Danielson lense, Bay-Williams, Karp and Van de Walle describe how teachers must work

together off-stage and “use the same language, symbols, models and notation to give students a familiar

thread that ties the concepts and the procedures together year after year.” (pg. 11). In the 21st century, PLC’s

must embrace the idea of common threads in the curriculum which will help the students see the progression

of classes in middle and high school as a seamless experience. In regards to the actual instructional content,

our (NCTM's) goal is to make the math focused, provide depth and show connections ( Bay-Williams et al.,

2019 pg.5). Teachers will need help accomplishing this, therefore, coaches and PLC’s need to provide support,

space and time to let that happen.

On-stage, teachers need to keep mathematics positive for all students. The authors communicate that

“research shows that teachers with positive attitudes teach math in more successful ways that result in

students liking math more (Karp, 1991) and performing at higher levels.” (Bay-Williams et al., 2019 pg. 10).

Basically, the teacher has a lot of power and influence on what kind of experience the students have in the

classroom environment and this will continue not only for the 21st century but beyond.

References

Adams, G., Danielson, C., Moilanen, G., & Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. (2009).
Enhancing professional practice: A framework for teaching. Alexandria, Va: ASCD.

Bay-Williams J, Karp K, Van de Walle J. (2019) Elementary and Middle School Mathematics: Teaching
Developmentally (10th Edition): Pearson.