Sandra Herbert
Dr Sandra Herbert is a Senior lecturer in the Faculty of Arts and Education at Deakin University. She is interested in high quality preparation of primary and secondary teachers, especially in mathematics and science with the intention to improve learner outcomes in schools. Her research spans these interests and has been published in high quality international journals such as the International Journal of Educational Research. More specifically, her publications exemplify the application of phenomenography to educational research receiving high praise from journal reviewers. A recent project explored the value of school-based experiences as professional learning for teachers based on a demonstration lesson in mathematical reasoning. Teachers were interviewed before and after the experience to develop a framework to track change in understanding of mathematical reasoning (see Herbert, Vale, Bragg, Loong, Widjaja, 2015).
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that the experience of engagement in school-based science teaching contributed to the development PST classroom readiness particularly with respect to statistically significant increases in confidence. We argue that moving tutorials from university into schools supports
PSTs’ engagement with the teaching profession and teaching science.
conversation about classroom animals, the learning opportunities that they afford, and the issues they present. Phenomenographic analysis of data resulted in five categories of teachers’ perceptions of the affordances and constraints of keeping classroom animals.
Herbert S & Lynch J 2017 (Online First, 25/02/2017), Classroom Animals Provide More Than Just
Science Education, Science and Education, DOI 10.1007/s11191-017-9874-6
Online first:
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11191-017-9874-6?wt_mc=Internal.Event.1.SEM.ArticleAuthorOnlineFirst wt_mc=Internal.Event.1.SEM.ArticleAuthorOnlineFirst
Australia were interviewed after engagement in the first stage of the Mathematical Reasoning Professional Learning Program incorporating demonstration lessons focused on reasoning conducted in their schools. Phenomenographic analysis of interview transcripts
exploring variation in the perceptions of mathematical reasoning held by these teachers revealed seven categories of description based on four dimensions of variation.The categories delineate the different perceptions of mathematical reasoning expressed by the participants of this study. The resulting outcome space establishes a framework that
facilitates tracking of growth in primary teachers’ awareness of aspects of mathematical reasoning
Published online: 22 May 2015.
School-wide curriculum initiatives are complex fields of activity, held together by a cast of heterogeneous actors who put diverse discourses to work in their everyday efforts to shape their work. This paper draws upon qualitative data collected across an 18-month period in a regional Australian primary school that, since the beginning of 2012, has implemented a school-wide science specialism. In this paper, we focus in detail on how one feature of the initiative – classroom animals – played out as the science specialism was enacted. The data provide glimpses into the practice of the curriculum initiative from a range of viewpoints. We explore the discursive positioning of the classroom animals, and the construction of teachers' work and student learning in relation to this. Tensions are explored between views of the initiative from above – from the perspective of the school leadership and key advocates of the initiative – and views from the ground – presented by classroom teachers as they reflect on their encounters with the animals. We discuss the divergent ways in which teacher practice can be constructed in relation to curriculum innovation and advocate practice-based theories as providing a generative lens for understanding and supporting teachers' innovative curriculum work and for understanding teaching practice more generally as an innovative, creative and productive undertaking.
their understanding of the concept of rate. Video-recordings were made of twenty interviews with Year 10 students. Detailed analysis, of both the sound and images,
illuminated the meaning of rate-related gestures. Findings indicate that students often use the symbols and metaphors of gesture to complement, supplement or even contradict verbal descriptions. This study demonstrates, in one setting, the efficacy of phenomenography, with attention not only to participants’ words but also their gestures, to explore mathematical conceptions.
students at an Australian secondary school. The instructional sequence, utilising JMW, provided rich learning experiences of rate of change in the context of a moving elevator. This context connects to students’ prior knowledge. The data taken from pre- and post-tests and student interviews revealed a wide variation in students’ understanding of rate of change. The variation was mapped on a hypothetical learning trajectory and interpreted in
the terms of the ‘emergent models’ theory (Gravemeijer, Math Think Learn 1(2):155–177, 1999) and illustrated by specific examples from the data. The results demonstrate that most students were able to use the ‘model of’ rate of change developed in a vertical motion context as a ‘model for’ rate of change in a horizontal motion context. A smaller majority of students were able to use their, often incomplete, ‘model of’ rate of change as a ‘model for’ reasoning about rate of change in a non-motion context.
planned lectures and CAS availability for all learning and assessment tasks, failed to capitalize on its affordances. If students are to work within the technical constraints, and
develop effective use of CAS, teachers need to provide assistance with technical difficulties, actively demonstrate CAS’ value and unambiguously reward its strategic use in
assessment.
that the experience of engagement in school-based science teaching contributed to the development PST classroom readiness particularly with respect to statistically significant increases in confidence. We argue that moving tutorials from university into schools supports
PSTs’ engagement with the teaching profession and teaching science.
conversation about classroom animals, the learning opportunities that they afford, and the issues they present. Phenomenographic analysis of data resulted in five categories of teachers’ perceptions of the affordances and constraints of keeping classroom animals.
Herbert S & Lynch J 2017 (Online First, 25/02/2017), Classroom Animals Provide More Than Just
Science Education, Science and Education, DOI 10.1007/s11191-017-9874-6
Online first:
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11191-017-9874-6?wt_mc=Internal.Event.1.SEM.ArticleAuthorOnlineFirst wt_mc=Internal.Event.1.SEM.ArticleAuthorOnlineFirst
Australia were interviewed after engagement in the first stage of the Mathematical Reasoning Professional Learning Program incorporating demonstration lessons focused on reasoning conducted in their schools. Phenomenographic analysis of interview transcripts
exploring variation in the perceptions of mathematical reasoning held by these teachers revealed seven categories of description based on four dimensions of variation.The categories delineate the different perceptions of mathematical reasoning expressed by the participants of this study. The resulting outcome space establishes a framework that
facilitates tracking of growth in primary teachers’ awareness of aspects of mathematical reasoning
Published online: 22 May 2015.
School-wide curriculum initiatives are complex fields of activity, held together by a cast of heterogeneous actors who put diverse discourses to work in their everyday efforts to shape their work. This paper draws upon qualitative data collected across an 18-month period in a regional Australian primary school that, since the beginning of 2012, has implemented a school-wide science specialism. In this paper, we focus in detail on how one feature of the initiative – classroom animals – played out as the science specialism was enacted. The data provide glimpses into the practice of the curriculum initiative from a range of viewpoints. We explore the discursive positioning of the classroom animals, and the construction of teachers' work and student learning in relation to this. Tensions are explored between views of the initiative from above – from the perspective of the school leadership and key advocates of the initiative – and views from the ground – presented by classroom teachers as they reflect on their encounters with the animals. We discuss the divergent ways in which teacher practice can be constructed in relation to curriculum innovation and advocate practice-based theories as providing a generative lens for understanding and supporting teachers' innovative curriculum work and for understanding teaching practice more generally as an innovative, creative and productive undertaking.
their understanding of the concept of rate. Video-recordings were made of twenty interviews with Year 10 students. Detailed analysis, of both the sound and images,
illuminated the meaning of rate-related gestures. Findings indicate that students often use the symbols and metaphors of gesture to complement, supplement or even contradict verbal descriptions. This study demonstrates, in one setting, the efficacy of phenomenography, with attention not only to participants’ words but also their gestures, to explore mathematical conceptions.
students at an Australian secondary school. The instructional sequence, utilising JMW, provided rich learning experiences of rate of change in the context of a moving elevator. This context connects to students’ prior knowledge. The data taken from pre- and post-tests and student interviews revealed a wide variation in students’ understanding of rate of change. The variation was mapped on a hypothetical learning trajectory and interpreted in
the terms of the ‘emergent models’ theory (Gravemeijer, Math Think Learn 1(2):155–177, 1999) and illustrated by specific examples from the data. The results demonstrate that most students were able to use the ‘model of’ rate of change developed in a vertical motion context as a ‘model for’ rate of change in a horizontal motion context. A smaller majority of students were able to use their, often incomplete, ‘model of’ rate of change as a ‘model for’ reasoning about rate of change in a non-motion context.
planned lectures and CAS availability for all learning and assessment tasks, failed to capitalize on its affordances. If students are to work within the technical constraints, and
develop effective use of CAS, teachers need to provide assistance with technical difficulties, actively demonstrate CAS’ value and unambiguously reward its strategic use in
assessment.