An Up-Close Look at Student-Centered Math Teaching
November 04, 2015
KIRK WALTERS, TONI M. SMITH, STEVE LEINWAND, WENDY SURR, ABIGAIL STEIN & PAUL BAILEY
Today, far too many students see mathematics as a subject to be endured, rather than a subject of real-world importance and personal value. But this doesn’t have to be the case. When teachers use student-centered techniques to engage students in more active and authentic ways, they can transform math classrooms into lively learning environments in which students take charge of their own learning, collaborate with others, persist in solving complicated problems and make meaningful connections to the world around them.
A new study from the American Institutes for Research (AIR) finds that students in high-quality, student-centered classrooms are more engaged and demonstrate higher performance on problem-solving assessments.
Our quantitative analyses showed positive, significant relationships between the study’s measure of student-centered practices and students’ engagement and problem-solving skills.