Mathematics teachers' engagement with textbook : the affordances of lesson study

Abstract

Lesson Study (LS), a collaborative practice-embedded teacher development model that originated in Japan, is used globally to foster teacher learning and learners’ mathematical thinking. One of the important attributes of LS is conducting the study of curriculum materials (kyozai-kenkyu in Japanese), which includes textbooks. This qualitative case study explores teacher engagement with textbooks during collaborative lesson planning, and lesson presentation and observation stages of the Lesson Study cycle in South Africa. The study aims to answer the primary research question: How do Grade 6 mathematics teachers engage with textbooks during the Lesson Study session? Two theoretical lenses were used to gain insights into this study: modes of teacher-text engagement with the textbook advocated by Remillard (2005) and Brown (2011), and Mathematics Knowledge for Teaching (MKT) espoused by Ball et al., (2008). Data were collected using observation and unstructured interviews. Findings revealed that although teacher-text engagement is predominantly with fidelity, they (the teachers) gained more insights into mathematics content and pedagogical skills as well as informed instructional decision-making. However, it was also revealed that the mathematics textbooks (especially the teachers’ guides) teachers used in this study do not adequately support teachers. To this effect, I propose the framework for conceptualisation of textbooks for consideration by policymakers, textbook authors, and publishers. Proposed key words: Lesson Study, mathematics textbooks, intended curriculum, implemented curriculum, curriculum materials