My study aims at pointing out how teachers´ for granted-taken assumptions on mathematics education with technology impacts their mathematics teaching. The study has a classroom perspective as a point of departure and the empiric material consists of 36 grade four teachers´ focus group discussions on technology in mathematics teaching. Gee´s (2005) theoretical framework on discourse analysis has been used focusing on so called Discourse models as a tool for investigation. Discourse models can, according to Gee (2005) be described as prototype simulations e.g taken for granted assumptions shared amongst a number of people. My interest is on functional aspects of technology in mathematics education and thus I have used the concepts of instrumental genesis and instrumental orchestration (Trouche, 2004) since these concepts highlights the relation between the student´s mathematics learning, the technology used and the teaching. Within the triad these factors form I have studied how teachers´ for grated taken assumptions both constrain and enable mathematics teaching with technology. The results point at teachers taking for granted that when students use technology individually or in pairs the purpose is drilling mathematics skills. The teachers also assume that the use of technology makes mathematics learning more fun. These assumptions differ from the intentions in the Swedish national mathematics curriculum, which points out scaffolding aspects of technology in mathematics learning such as enabling mathematical explorations using digital dynamic representations. In the empirical material there is one example of teachers´ assumptions on technology in mathematics education which coincides with the intentions of the Swedish national curriculum thus being an example of how technology can be used in exploring mathematics. When technology is used in whole class teaching it is argued by the teachers that it helps “opening up” class discussions. More on, the results show that the teachers take for granted (particularly when technology is used individually or in pairs) that the instrumental genesis occurs without their orchestration, which means that responsibility for students´ instrumental genesis is put either on the student or on the tool. This means that students´ instrumental genesis towards the object of learning is assessed in regards to the student or to the tool. The issue of teacher orchestrations becomes a non-issue. The results of the study also suggests that the teacher´s autonomy in relation to the tool affects the instrumental orchestration.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:mau-32954 |
| Date | January 2016 |
| Creators | Ryan, Ulrika |
| Publisher | Malmö högskola, Fakulteten för lärande och samhälle (LS), Malmö högskola/Lärande och samhälle |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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