Chinese Journal of Science Education

Abstract

This paper reports on how the researchers assisted a senior high school teacher to insert mathematical modeling into his teaching in the context of time and content constraints. The paper examines the effects of the teaching strategies as well as the latent mechanism of promoting teachers’ reflection in terms of the “solving doubt” theory. During the research process of one and half years, one researcher collaborated with the participating teacher with aim of helping this teacher overcome obstacles in teaching mathematical modeling. Subsequently, both researchers interpreted the data from this process. The teacher’s growth during the participating process was demonstrated by (a) teaching materials: consideration of the relevance of textbooks, the diversity of problem situations, movement from the fluency of sequential activities to consideration for the association with students’ experience and the variety of students’ modeling strategies initiated by the teaching material; (b) teaching method: playing the leading role in the beginning, the hinting and observing role, the managing role followed by the premeditating and discussing role; (c) students’ modeling thought: changing the perspective from problem solving to mathematical modeling. After examining the teacher’s growth under each learning context, it is confirmed that providing the source of teaching material is helpful in establishing the teachers’ confidence, inspecting and learning from another teacher’s teaching can break through the limitation of teachers’ reflection, and openly discussing the analysis framework of students’ modeling thought encourages teachers to design new activities. This paper provides educators or teachers with new strategies for professional development in practice. This analysis of the latent mechanism underlying this teacher’s reflection may help educators elaborate the process of professional development.

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