E-Book Overview
Studies of teachers in the U.S. often document insufficient subject matter knowledge in mathematics. Yet, these studies give few examples of the knowledge teachers need to support teaching, particularly the kind of teaching demanded by recent reforms in mathematics education. Knowing and Teaching Elementary Mathematics describes the nature and development of the knowledge that elementary teachers need to become accomplished mathematics teachers, and suggests why such knowledge seems more common in China than in the United States, despite the fact that Chinese teachers have less formal education than their U.S. counterparts. The anniversary edition of this bestselling volume includes the original studies that compare U.S and Chinese elementary school teachers’ mathematical understanding and offers a powerful framework for grasping the mathematical content necessary to understand and develop the thinking of school children. Highlighting notable changes in the field and the author’s work, this new edition includes an updated preface, introduction, and key journal articles that frame and contextualize this seminal work.
E-Book Content
Knowing and Teaching Elementary Mathematics Anniversary Edition “Both sides in the math wars claim Dr. Ma as their own. This book’s broad appeal offers some hope for common ground in math education…. We will continue fights over whether children should be taught arithmetic rules or theory. What Dr. Ma shows is that we need both.” —New York Times “Liping Ma’s work has given me hope about what can be done to improve mathematics education.” —Richard Askey, Professor of Mathematics, University of Wisconsin-Madison “A stealth hit for math junkies on both sides of the ‘math wars’, and a must read for anyone interested in solving the problems of public schools.” —Christian Science Monitor “This book supports the need for, and indeed the educational benefits of, changing professional teaching conditions for U.S. teachers.… It provides some food for thought for everyone involved in improving mathematics education. And it supports the necessity that even at the elementary school level, students can, and should, learn challenging mathematics.” —National Council of Teachers of Mathematics News Bulletin Studies of teachers in the United States often document insufficient subject matter knowledge in mathematics. Yet, these studies give few examples of the knowledge teachers need to support teaching, particularly the kind of teaching demanded by recent reforms in mathematics education. Knowing and Teaching Elementary Mathematics describes the nature and development of the knowledge that elementary teachers need to become accomplished mathematics teachers, and suggests why such knowledge seems more common in China than in the United States, despite the fact that Chinese teachers have less formal education than their U.S. counterparts. The anniversary edition of this bestselling volume includes the original studies that compare U.S. and Chinese elementary school teachers’ mathematical understanding and offers a powerful framework for grasping the mathematical content necessary to understand and develop the thinking of school children. Highlighting notable changes in the field and the author’s work, this new edition includes an updated preface, introduction, and key journal articles that frame and contextualize this seminal work. Liping Ma earned a Ph.D. from Stanford University, following a masters degree in education from East China Normal University. After a term as a senior scientist at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, she is now an independent scholar. STUDIES IN MATHEMATICAL THINKING AND LEARNING Alan H.Schoenfeld, Series Editor Artzt/Armour-Thomas/Curcio • Becoming a Reflective Mathematics Teacher: A Guide for Observation and Self-Assessment, Second Edition Baroody/Dowker (Eds.) • T