Teaching anxieties revealed: pre-service elementary teachers’ reflections on their mathematics teaching experiences

Over the last 50?years, there has been ample research dedicated to mathematics anxiety in contexts of teaching and learning. However, there has been less attention focused on pre-service teachers’ anxieties about teaching mathematics in classroom settings. This study analyzed pre-service teachers’ reflections at the conclusion of an elementary mathematics field experience in order to determine common themes surrounding anxiety-related events based on mathematics practice-teaching experiences. Through qualitative analysis of pre-service teachers’ reflections using open and axial coding, three categories and ten themes surrounding elementary pre-service teachers’ anxiety-related events based on mathematics practice-teaching experiences emerged. Some of the themes presented were ones that increased pre-service teachers’ anxieties for teaching mathematics, whereas other themes reflected aspects of the field experience that decreased anxiety for teaching mathematics. Based on the themes revealed in this study, suggestions for strategies and materials that could be developed for university mathematics methods courses are discussed. Novel perspectives for considering mathematics teaching anxiety, such as locus of control and future time perspective, are shared.     

A Content Analysis of Ethnographic Research Published in Top Criminology and Criminal Justice Journals from 2000 to 2009

Despite qualitative research having much to offer to the understanding and prevention of crime, academic research in criminology and criminal justice (CCJ) is primarily quantitative. The relatively limited amount of ethnographic research in the field contributes to difficulties in understanding what represents sound ethnographic designs and the most appropriate ways to present such information. The current study examines the relative frequency with which ethnographic research appears in CCJ journals, and more importantly, the content of these articles. We find that less than 4% of all research published in 15 top CCJ journals use ethnographic methods. We present patterns about the methodological (e.g., sample size, type of data collection, and characteristics of participants) and stylistic (writing style, discussion of coding, and policy recommendations) content of these articles. We conclude with implications for our findings and point to substantive areas of research that may need more attention.     

Cognitive and affective minds: A necessary marriage in criminal justice education

This paper examines the role race and course content may play in the teaching evaluation scores of a black criminologist currently teaching at a predominantly white institution. Making use of a case study design, the author compared his teaching evaluation scores from similar courses taught at both a predominantly white institution and an historically black institution. The data revealed that while race may play a role in the evaluation process, the nature of the course may offer a stronger explanation as to why he received lower evaluation scores on a race-related criminal justice course than a series of other criminal justice courses.     

Assessing Preservice Leaders' Beliefs,Attitudes, and Values Regarding Issues of Diversity,Social Justice,and Equity: A Review of Existing Measures

While convincing research suggests that beliefs are the best predictors of individual behavior and that educators' beliefs influence their perceptions, judgments, and practices, research also states that beliefs are hardy and highly resistant to change (Bandura, 1986 Bandura, A. 1986. Social foundations of thought and action: A social cognitive theory, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.  [Google Scholar]; Dewey, 1933 Dewey, J. 1933. How we think: A restatement of the relation of reflective thinking to the educative process, Boston: D.C. Heath. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]; Pajares, 1992 Pajares, F. 1992. Teachers' beliefs and educational research: Cleaning up a messy construct. Review of Educational Research, 62(3): 307–332. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]; Rokeach, 1968 Rokeach, M. 1968. Beliefs, attitudes, and values: A theory of organization and change, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.  [Google Scholar]). Understanding the nature of beliefs, attitudes, and values is essential to understanding future administrators' choices, decisions, and effectiveness regarding issues of diversity, social justice, and equity. This article provides a review of quantitative measures, instruments, inventories, and studies that assess educators' personal and professional beliefs, attitudes, perceptions, and preconceptions. The literature review briefly describes related studies and the discussion section highlights in detail the design, piloting, and results of two fairly recent measures that broadly define diversity, that report validity and reliability data, and that are relatively easy to administer and score.     

Silenced Memories: An Examination of the Sociocultural Knowledge on Race and Racial Violence in Official School Curriculum

Drawing from the theoretical lenses of cultural memory and critical race theory, we examined how elementary level and middle school level social studies textbooks represent the history of racial violence directed toward African Americans and resistance to this violence in the U.S. Using a literary analysis method, we found that textbooks often presented vivid accounts; however, these narratives often presented these acts as detached from the larger structural and institutional ties that supported and subsequently benefited from these actions. We contend that this limited representation of racial violence has an adverse effect on the larger sociocultural memory and sociocultural knowledge available to students, thus limiting the extent to which students can fully understand the legacy of racism and racial inequity in the U.S.     

Awakening Teachers’ Capacities for Social Justice With/In Arts-Based Inquiries

Social justice-oriented teacher education can guide preservice teachers toward greater critical sociocultural knowledge, analytic skills, social responsibility, and commitment to act in the interest of providing all students with high quality educational experiences. This qualitative case study examines how arts-based inquiries in social justice-oriented teacher education can provide the necessary generative spaces for developing preservice teachers’ critical sociocultural knowledge. Data were drawn from student interviews and reflective papers across four sections of a course employing collaborative, arts-based inquiry. Findings highlight the cumulative knowledge, pleasure, anxiety, confrontation with material and symbolic bodies, and self-transformations that can develop from art practices and help to awaken preservice teachers’ critical consciousness for teaching for social justice.     

New Rules for Business in a Flat World: A Trustees Call to Action

As policymakers, community college trustees have a responsibility to help keep their communities strong. How they do this is by helping to give everyone a chance for higher education. Thomas Friedman says that John F. Kennedy's vision was to put a man on the moon. His vision is to put every American on a campus. To do this, trustees can use these 7 “New Rules of Business:” (a) having a renewed focus on higher education accountability, (b) continued anxiety over college affordability, (c) waning public support, (d) growing expectations, (e) increasing competition, (f) changing demographics, and (g) the growing leadership crisis.     

The influence of experience on student teachers' beliefs about inclusion

Abstract

Teacher beliefs influence the implementation of inclusion practices in the classroom. Therefore, the importance of developing positive beliefs during the preservice years cannot be overstated. The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of professional experiences on students’ beliefs about inclusion. This qualitative study was comprised of a series of interviews (group and individual) and analysis of reflective writings for six student teachers. Findings indicated that experiences both professional and personal contribute to the development of the students’ beliefs about inclusion. If these experiences were positive, the preservice teachers were more positively disposed to the concept of inclusion. Therefore, teacher training programs are afforded the opportunity to influence preservice teachers’ development of positive beliefs about inclusion which may ultimately affect the inclusion process.     

Clinical Professors for Teacher Education

It is not unusual to find elaborate schemes for compelling and assessing class participation. Although participation can take many forms, in practice it is most synonymous with discussion, which, at its core, is about student engagement. But with what should the students be engaged? When we make class participation a requirement and assess it, students must then produce evidence. But of what? The author examines the intentions behind class participation, considers the means and associated meanings of its implementation, and suggests new ways for professors to think about and justify it, with our productive learning outcomes in mind.