1. The Call for Action: Coaching and Supporting Mathematics Instruction
Gabr’l Stackhouse
April 25, 2015

2. Purpose
To develop a framework for strengthening the teaching and learning of mathematics that incorporates the Eight Mathematics Teaching Practices.

3. Learning Goals
To gain a conceptual understanding of the eight Mathematics Teaching Practices and the impact they have on the academic success of all students.
To gain a conceptual understanding of how to navigate conversations with teachers to enhance professional growth and raise student achievement in mathematics.

4. Collaborative Norms Actively engage Openly share
Provide honest, constructive feedback
Have fun

5. Introductions Name Position
Number of years evaluating classroom teachers

6. Mathematics Instruction Is . .
Discuss in your groups typical teacher and student actions during a math observation.
What is the teacher doing?
What are the students doing?
Use a piece of chart in the middle of your table to create a T-chart and express your thoughts.
Teacher Actions
Student Actions

7. How do teacher beliefs influence the teaching and learning of mathematics?

8. “An excellent mathematics program requires effective teaching that engages students in meaningful learning through individual and collaborative experiences that promote their ability to make sense of mathematical ideas and reason mathematically (NCTM, 2014).”

9. The Call for Action
According to the National Council for Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) (2014):
Average NAEP scores for 17-year-olds have been flat since 1973
Only about 44% of US graduates in were considered ready for college work in mathematics as measured by the SAT and ACT
Only about 16% of US high school seniors in 2013 were proficient in mathematics and interested in a STEM career
Leinwand, S., Brahier, D. J., Huinker, D., Berry III, R. Q., Dillion, F. L., Larson, M. R., et al. (2014). Principles to Actions: Ensuring Mathematical Success for All. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

10. The Call for Action
To ensure mathematics is a reality for ALL students, we must:
Eliminate persistent racial, ethnic, and income achievement gaps so all students have opportunities and supports to achieve at high levels.
Increase the level of mathematics learning for all students so they are college and career ready.
Increase the number of high school graduates who are interested in and prepared for STEM careers.
Leinwand, S., Brahier, D. J., Huinker, D., Berry III, R. Q., Dillion, F. L., Larson, M. R., et al. (2014). Principles to Actions: Ensuring Mathematical Success for All. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

11. Beliefs About Teaching and Learning Mathematics
According to NCTM (2014) there are two beliefs about how students should learn mathematics.
Belief # 1:
Students should learn mathematics by memorizing facts, formulas, and procedures then practicing skills over and over again.
Belief #2:
Mathematics lessons should be centered on engaging students in solving and discussing tasks that promote reasoning about problem solving.
Leinwand, S., Brahier, D. J., Huinker, D., Berry III, R. Q., Dillion, F. L., Larson, M. R., et al. (2014). Principles to Actions: Ensuring Mathematical Success for All. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

12. Beliefs About Teaching and Learning Mathematics
Teachers’ beliefs influence the decisions they make about the manner in which they teach mathematics.
Students’ beliefs about mathematics influences their perception of what it means to learn mathematics and their dispositions toward the subject.
Beliefs should be viewed as unproductive and productive instead of good and bad.
Leinwand, S., Brahier, D. J., Huinker, D., Berry III, R. Q., Dillion, F. L., Larson, M. R., et al. (2014). Principles to Actions: Ensuring Mathematical Success for All. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

13. Beliefs About Teaching and Learning Mathematics
In your groups, determine if your assigned belief about teaching and learning mathematics is unproductive or productive.
Select one person from your group to share why the belief is unproductive or productive.

14. Eight Mathematics Teaching Practices
Establish mathematics goals to focus learning.
Implement tasks that promote reasoning and problem solving.
Use and connect mathematical representations.
Facilitate meaningful mathematical discourse.
Pose purposeful questions.
Build procedural fluency from conceptual understanding.
Support productive struggle in learning mathematics.
Elicit and use evidence of student thinking.
Leinwand, S., Brahier, D. J., Huinker, D., Berry III, R. Q., Dillion, F. L., Larson, M. R., et al. (2014). Principles to Actions: Ensuring Mathematical Success for All. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

15. Eight Mathematics Teaching Practices Expert Groups
Read your assigned Mathematics Teaching Practice in your expert group.
Decide on three important ideas to share about your teaching practice.

16. Building a School Climate for Coaching
What is your most important goal as a building administrator?

17. Where is the Balance?
Teacher Success
Student Success

18. Evaluation and Coaching
Professional Teaching Standards
Evaluation
Coaching

19. Evaluation and Coaching
To truly affect the teaching and learning process administrators must be equipped to promote individual teacher growth beyond current levels of performance.

20. Evaluation and Coaching
Teacher evaluation involves making judgments about the overall quality of a teacher’s performance.
Coaching promotes individual teacher growth beyond the teacher’s current level of performance.

21. Why Coach Teachers? Major investment in human capital
Provides teachers with individualized support to meet their unique instructional needs
Allows teachers to diagnose their own teaching and identify ways to strengthen their work
Serves as a school-wide improvement
Supports a culture of collaboration

22. Building a School Climate for Coaching
Build trust and positive communication
Understand teacher beliefs
Encourage continuous reflection and inquiry
Collect, interpret, and use formative data
Confer with teachers
Foster a school wide climate that values community, collaboration, and continuous growth

23. Building a School Climate for Coaching
Coaching cannot be seen as a punishment or as a requirement
Good coaching involves:
Helping teachers identify goals for their work
Creating a setting where teachers feel comfortable
Asking thoughtful, open-ended questions that promote reflection
Providing precise and non-judgmental feedback

24. Coaching in Action

25. Coaching T-Chart
Coach Actions
Teacher Actions

26. Coaching Blueprint
How does the classroom teacher demonstrate leadership in mathematics?
What does the mathematics classroom look like? Sound like?
What evidence of teacher content knowledge is displayed during the lesson?
How are students engaged in the learning process?
What data does the teacher gather to determine if the lesson meet the needs of all learners? How is the data used drive instruction? Teacher PD?

27. Putting the Pieces Together
How do the Eight Mathematics Teaching Practices help us understand how teacher and student actions foster or hinder a conducive classroom community of learning?

28. Session Evaluation Reflect on the session today.
What is your biggest “ah-ha?”
What validated your current practice?
What do you know you will work on moving forward?

29. Resources
Leinwand, S., Brahier, D. J., Huinker, D., Berry III, R. Q., Dillion, F. L., Larson, M. R., et al. (2014). Principles to Actions: Ensuring Mathematical Success for All. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. NCTM. (2015, March 31). Position Statements. Retrieved from: Statements/ NCTM. (2000). Principles and standards for school mathematics. Reston, VA: National Council for Teachers of Mathematics.

30. Contact Information
Gabr’l Stackhouse Math Consultant Creative Minds Consulting Phone:

31. Thank you for your participation
“I hear and I forget.
I see and I remember.
I do and I understand.”
~ Chinese Proverb ~