Two ideas are prevalent in teacher professional development today. Teachers are finding new and innovative ways to incorporate technology into their classroom. The use of video and social media is increasing. One type of pedagogy that has emerged among the blended learning pedagogies is flipped instruction, where students participate in some of the instruction outside of the classroom. Another prevalent idea is the focus on inquiry learning and reform-based mathematics instruction. This pedagogy adheres to the idea that students can use their problem solving skills to understand complex mathematics. This qualitative content analysis outlines how one researcher sought to find a balance between the two ideas. The two ideas conflicted at times, but the researcher ultimately found innovative ways to reconcile those conflicts. The study describes how one fourth-grade class used a website to engage in mathematics conversations in a blended learning environment. This blended learning environment maintained the values of a reform-based mathematics classroom. The researcher found that students engaged in conversation online contained instances where students formed theories, questioned one another's theories, built on the thinking of other students, used precise and formal language, and used evidence to support student thinking. Teachers that implement blended learning or flipped instruction should seek out methods that adhere to an inquiry approach to teaching mathematics. The researcher also found that the development of a student in a particular conceptual understanding may have an impact on the depth of conversation they engage in.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:BGMYU2/oai:scholarsarchive.byu.edu:etd-5208 |
| Date | 08 July 2014 |
| Creators | Young, Lewis L. |
| Publisher | BYU ScholarsArchive |
| Source Sets | Brigham Young University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Theses and Dissertations |
| Rights | http://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/ |
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