The purpose of this study was to examine instructor and student usage of calculators in basic mathematics and prealgebra courses at a community college. Researcher-created surveys were given to 54 instructors and 198 students. The results showed instructors were fairly evenly divided about policies regarding the use of calculators. The major reason for not allowing calculators was that students needed to develop basic skills, and the major reason for allowing calculators was to concentrate on learning concepts. Students used calculators mainly for computation and seldom reported instructors using calculators in class for any other reason. Students were more likely to see calculators as learning tools than were teachers, who saw calculators mainly as computation machines. The results also indicated that instructors were confused about department calculator policies, and students were confused about classroom calculator use policies.

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Studies show that teachers lack training and confidence when it comes to intervening effectively in bullying situations. The goal of this study is to respond to the appeals of pre-service teachers for more formal training on bullying, including prevention and intervention strategies. A two-hour PREVNet workshop that provides information on bullying, bullying prevention and bullying intervention is offered in four Canadian Teacher Education classes. Two unique questionnaires, each consisting of simulated bullying incidents in a school context and a set of teacher interventions, were developed, piloted with a group of experienced teachers, and used to assess the effect of the workshop on teachers’ reported interventions in bullying situations. The results of a series of repeated measures ANOVAs reveal a marginally significant effect of the workshop on pre-service teachers’ reported interventions (N = 66), with the greatest improvements revealed in participants’ responses to children who bully.

Problem posing is commonly perceived as a cognitive activity that emerges in the process solving a problem but appears less commonly in the process of classroom instruction. The creation and reformulation of mathematics problems engages students’ thinking and their inquisitiveness in mathematical learning. This dissertation consists of three articles that explore the potential of problem posing for improving the teaching and learning of mathematics. This dissertation study begins with a meta-analytic study of research findings on classroom instruction based on problem posing activities. The Hedges’ g effect size is utilized to measure the effect of the problem posing instruction from 13 published studies. Four learning outcomes are identified from the studies: mathematics achievement, problem solving skills, levels of problems posed, and attitudes toward mathematics. The second article focuses on finding the relationship between problem posing and problem solving. Fifty one middle school preservice teachers participated in this study and completed two tasks related to problem posing and problem solving. Rubrics were developed to assess the written responses that revealed participants’ abilities in solving and posing mathematical problems. A fully mixed methods research design is utilized in article three for examining the effect of a fraction instruction on the level of elementary preservice teachers’ content knowledge, pedagogical content knowledge, and attitudes towards fractions. The instruction focused on using concrete models, problem solving, and problem posing activities for developing elementary preservice teachers’ knowledge of teaching fractions. The results from these studies revealed that problem posing is an effective approach as an inquiry-based instruction for improving students’ learning in mathematics. Research efforts are needed to further the type of studies that can provide teachers with specific approaches in developing and using problem posing strategies in the mathematics classroom.

This study examines the way in which three Education Assistants (EAs) engaged with an Initial Teacher Education (ITE) program at an Australian Higher Education Institution (HEI). In order to assist the EAs to engage with the ITE program the school in which they worked developed a series of intervention strategies. These strategies combined to form what became known as the Christmas Island District High School (CIDHS) Trainee Teacher Program. Through this program the EAs were provided support in the various critical aspects of the ITE program. Within an Australian context the EAs were from non-mainstream backgrounds. They were mature age women who had disrupted educational backgrounds, spoke English as a second language, and were living in a geographically remote location. Their journey from ‘Education Assistant’ to ‘Teacher’, via an ITE program and with the support of the school, is the subject of this inquiry. A grounded qualitative research methodology is used to investigate and analyse the participation of the EAs from their points of view. The personal and grounded experiences of the participants in this study are then supplemented by a review of the international literature pertaining to non-mainstream participation in Higher Education. Specifically, the study examines significant aspects of an ITE program including: • Entrance via alternative access programs • Engagement with course theory and school practicums • Recognition for Prior Learning (RPL) • The implications of studying via distance mode • The role of mentors • The impact of funding structures and fees on non-mainstream students As well as the pragmatic aspects of the program, this study also examines the critical impact that various Discourses (Gee, 1999), and the ideologies that underpin them, had on the ability of the participants to successfully make the transition from Education Assistant to Teacher. The dissertation ends with a series of recommendations for action for the HEI sector, schools sectors and regulatory authorities. The aims are to add to the international literature on non-mainstream participation in ITE and to aid in the development of ITE programs that better address the needs of non-mainstream students.