Authenticity of elementary teacher designed and implemented mathematical modeling tasks

Mathematical modeling is a high-leverage topic; it is critical to students' participation in STEM education and supports civic engagement. Until recently, research on modeling at the elementary level has been underemphasized, particularly research on supports and challenges for teachers who eng...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inMathematical thinking and learning Vol. 26; no. 1; pp. 47 - 70
Main Authors Turner, Erin E., Bennett, Amy Been, Granillo, Monica, Ponnuru, Nishaan, Roth Mcduffie, Amy, Foote, Mary Q., Aguirre, Julia M., McVicar, Elzena
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Philadelphia Routledge 02.01.2024
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
Authenticity
case study research
Citizen Participation
Community Relations
curriculum design
Design
elementary mathematics teachers
Elementary school teachers
Mathematical analysis
Mathematical modeling
Mathematical models
STEM Education
Teachers
Technical education
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Summary:Mathematical modeling is a high-leverage topic; it is critical to students' participation in STEM education and supports civic engagement. Until recently, research on modeling at the elementary level has been underemphasized, particularly research on supports and challenges for teachers who engage in designing authentic modeling tasks. In this study, we employed qualitative case study methods to investigate how elementary teachers designed and implemented authentic mathematical modeling tasks, with an explicit focus on how their tasks evidenced different dimensions of authenticity. We analyzed three cases of teams of elementary teachers as they developed modeling tasks connected to school and community contexts. The three cases were: 1) a student-driven modeling task related to paper and plastic waste in a school cafeteria, 2) a modeling task based on authentic situations at a community-run resource center, and 3) a modeling task focused on designing and monitoring a school community-building art project. Our cases illustrate that elementary teachers can successfully design and implement modeling activities that utilize different entry points and evidence multiple dimensions of authenticity. Furthermore, we found that the specific dimensions of authenticity may vary depending on the design supports and curriculum challenges within each context.
ISSN:1098-6065
1532-7833
DOI:10.1080/10986065.2022.2028225