How do mathematics teachers teach statistics? A comprehensive examination of statistical problem-solving process and instructional quality

Date

2023-7

Author

Şeker Akın, Vuslat

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This qualitative case study examines the statistical teaching practices in middle school mathematics classrooms. It investigates discipline-specific teaching practices by analyzing the statistical content covered and the approaches to the statistical problem-solving processes. Moreover, it explores the quality of statistics instruction within the broader context of mathematics, considering four dimensions: The depth of mathematical and statistical concepts covered, the richness of mathematics and statistics, the occurrence of errors and imprecision, and student engagement in meaning-making and reasoning during statistics instruction within the context of mathematics. The study focuses on the teaching practices of two middle school mathematics teachers, where data was collected through classroom observations, interviews, and classroom artifacts. The data was analyzed using the Transcript Coding Protocol Using GAISE Framework and Mathematical Quality of Instruction Framework. The findings show that the statistical teaching practices were primarily traditional. The emphasis was on the data analysis element of the statistical problem-solving process, focusing on calculating measures of central tendency and constructing graphs, while other elements received less attention. Moreover, the teaching practices lacked a comprehensive approach to the statistical problem-solving cycle. The study also reveals that the quality of statistics instruction in the observed classrooms was generally typical, with specific lessons demonstrating higher quality. Furthermore, the teaching practices centered around mathematical and statistical activities with mostly error-free and precision. The richness of mathematics and statistics was generally low to mid-quality. Working with students and mathematics and statistics generally indicated lower quality. However, opportunities for students to engage in meaning-making and reasoning were limited.

Subject Keywords

Statistical teaching practices, Statistical problem-solving processes, Instructional quality, Middle school mathematics teachers, Qualitative case study

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/11511/104518

Collections

Graduate School of Social Sciences, Thesis