How Ms. Mayen and Her Students Co-Constructed Good-at-Math
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What does it mean to be “good-at-math,” and how is it determined? Cobb et al. (2009) defined the normative identity of mathematics classrooms as the obligations that students must meet to be considered good-at-math. Obligations are negotiated between teachers and students through series of bids. Normative identities reveal distributions of agency and authority within classrooms, which affect learning opportunities for students. Traditionally, mathematics teachers held the predominance of agency and authority in classrooms. Research supports shifting toward more equitable teaching and learning (e.g., National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 2018). Clear examples of enacting and supporting changes are helpful. This article shares how sixth-grade students and their teacher co-constructed good-at-math to invite and obligate students to become active agents in mathematical argumentation.
Supplementary Materials
- Appendix A (28.2 KB)
- Appendix B (231 KB)
- Appendix C (29.5 KB)
Footnotes
As with Ms. Mayen and her students, my best thinking happens with thought partners, so I have many people to thank. My deepest gratitude goes to Ms. Mayen and her students for welcoming me into their classroom. Thanks go to Jill Baxter, Kara Boulahanis, K. C. Busch, Marta Civil, Heidi Eisenreich, Maisie Gholson, Michelle Lo, Edit Khachatryan, Sarah Kate Selling, Kathy Stoehr, and Andrew Wild for their contributions and feedback on earlier drafts of this manuscript. Thanks to the editors and anonymous reviewers for providing pivotal feedback. This research was funded by the Stanford Dissertation Support Grant and Diversity Dissertation Research Opportunity Grant.
This article was accepted under the editorship of Jinfa Cai.
Note: Appendices for this article are available online only at https://pubs.nctm.org/view/journals/jrme/52/2/article-p152.xml?tab_body=supplementaryMaterials
Contributor Notes
Jennifer Ruef, Department of Education Studies, University of Oregon, 5277 University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403; jruef@uoregon.edu
