An exploratory study on the identity work of secondary math teachers and their engagement with critical statistical literacy

UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
Lauren Naomi Baucom (Creator)
Institution
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/
Advisor
Edna Tan

Abstract: In an era of data saturation, teacher educators have yet to address the problem of how to develop the critical statistical literacy of practicing teachers. This study contributes to our understanding of teaching learning, specifically considering how designed materials can make visible the identity work of practicing secondary mathematics teachers. Exploring how materials designed to develop critical statistical literacy interact with the historicity and knowledge of who a teacher is and is becoming as a critical statistics educator illuminates the critical role that identity plays in teacher learning. My dissertation focused on the development of critical statistical literacy that occurred in a sample of secondary math teachers who implemented materials designed for a new fourth level math classroom in a southeastern state. I anchored the design materials around exploratory data analysis, a purposefully chosen context of study that allowed for the infusion of critical statistics topics throughout one unit of study in a high school math classroom. Following from the work of Cobb and colleagues (2013), Bakker (2019), and others, my examination of the design-based materials through the lens of the teachers’ enactment illuminates how specific key features can develop critical statistical literacy in secondary mathematics teachers. Drawing from Wenger (1998), Sfard and Prusak (2005), Tan and colleagues (2013), and others, my examination of identity work was guided by how one’s access to resources can make visible the identity work that is occurring in relationship to the development of critical statistical literacy. Here, I present my study of teacher development of critical statistical literacy from multiple perspectives, ranging from the details of curricular design, to the identity work made visible through their enactment, to the commonalities and contrasts in their reasoning for their varied participation. While there is clear evidence of identity work being made visible in the teachers through the enactment of the materials, the interaction between who a teacher was, who they say they are, the resources they have available to them, and who they wish to become yields a range of experiences that provide a rich story for better understanding how to support teacher development of critical statistical literacy. My study pushes for further exploration of how the field can continue to examine the complex interplay of curricular design, teacher identity work, and critical statistics for the betterment of society.

Additional Information

Publication
Dissertation
Language: English
Date: 2022
Keywords
Critical Statistics, Curriculum, Design Based Research, Statistics education, Teacher Learning
Subjects
Mathematics $x Study and teaching $x Psychological aspects
Mathematical statistics $x Study and teaching (Secondary)
Mathematics teachers $x In-service training
Curriculum planning

Email this document to