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In the past two decades, there has been a trend in materials for mathematics courses for prospective secondary teachers: more opportunities for teachers to “apply mathematics to teaching”. That is, materials increasingly highlight how mathematical knowledge learned in the course can be useful in secondary teaching, and provide opportunities for teachers to harness this knowledge in simulations of teaching. There is little known about the effects of this curricular reform on teachers’ competence. In this report, we use data from the Mathematics of Doing, Understanding, Learning, and Educating for Secondary Schools MODULE(S2) project to examine the potential impact of using such curricular materials. The data include over 300 prospective secondary teachers’ responses to 3 sets of Likert pre-/post-term surveys addressing: mathematical knowledge for teaching; expectancy for enacting selected core teaching practices; and valuing of enacting these practices. We found mean increases across the survey results. We conclude with directions for future research on the impact of this curricular reform. 

Research in prospective teachers’ development of mathematical modeling knowledge for teaching is gaining momentum. The Mathematics of Doing, Understanding, Learning, and Educating for Secondary Students [MODULE(S2)]* project developed a curriculum in modeling for teacher education that includes simulations of practice, in which prospective teachers reflect on and plan a discussion around student thinking, their models, and the contextualization of their results. We present an analysis of prospective teachers’ modeling work on the decreasing area of Indigenous reservation land in the U.S., and a simulation of practice which explores different methods for finding the area of land in connection to the injustice deeply rooted in the treatment of Indigenous people. This problem explores a critical social issue and calls for explicit attention to pedagogical knowledge in structuring discussions around the contextualization of the mathematical results. 

This study examines prospective elementary teachers’ growth and development of competencies, conceptions, and perceptions of mathematical modelling in a mathematics content course for ele- mentary teachers. A series of lessons were implemented that engaged students in the modelling process through modelling tasks. The goal was to capture prospective teachers’ thoughts and per- ceptions on the meaning of mathematical modelling and their conceptions of teaching and learning modelling at the elementary and middle school level. The research questions were: (1) How do prospective teachers translate the mathematical modelling cycle into their practice of doing modelling? and (2) How do prospective teachers’ conceptions of modelling and teaching and learning modelling evolve throughout the implementation of a series of mathematical modelling lessons? Data sources included posters, modelling reports, responses to a pre- and post-intervention questionnaire, and semi-structured interview dialogue. Data analyses included mixed methods using provisional coding, open coding, and a categorical rubric. Findings from this study indicate that (1)Prospective elementary teachers translated the modelling cycle into their practice by developing their range of modelling competencies including multiple components of the modelling cycle, and (2) They developed a professionally appro- priate conception of mathematical modelling along with productive perceptions of the benefits of teaching and learning modelling. 

This theoretical report addresses the challenge and promise of improving prospective secondary mathematics teachers’ experiences in undergraduate mathematics courses through tasks embedded in pedagogical contexts. The objective of this approach, used by multiple nationally- funded projects, is to enhance the development of teachers’ MKT. We report on the construction of a framework for observing and analyzing the development of teachers’ MKT. This framework is the result of integrating several existing frameworks and analyzing a sample of prospective secondary teachers’ responses to tasks embedded in pedagogical contexts. We discuss the methods used to build this framework, the strengths and weaknesses of the framework, and the potential of the framework for informing future work in curriculum design and implementation. 

This theoretical report addresses the challenge and promise of improving prospective secondary mathematics teachers’ experiences in undergraduate mathematics courses through tasks embedded in pedagogical contexts. The objective of this approach, used by multiple nationally funded projects, is to enhance the development of teachers’ MKT. We report on the construction of a framework for observing and analyzing the development of teachers’ MKT. This framework is the result of integrating several existing frameworks and analyzing a sample of prospective secondary teachers’ responses to tasks embedded in pedagogical contexts. We discuss the methods used to build this framework, the strengths and weaknesses of the framework, and the potential of the framework for informing future work in curriculum design and implementation.