PCMI 2010: Reflecting on Teaching

Watch the following video of a 7th grade classroom in Seattle, during the middle of the year. In this class, the teacher had asked students to compute and explain why their answer made sense.

Day 1: Looking at a Classroom

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Introduce yourself to your table-mates.

Briefly: One thing you observed when watching the video.  

Briefly: One thing you wonder about after watching the video.  

What did you see observe?

What is the teacher is watching /listening for in her classroom? Give specific lines / observations in the video.

Describe any productive discussions you noted in the video. What did the teacher to do that led to these discussions? Give specific teacher decisions mathematical discourse that ensues.   

Video, Part 2: Viewing through a Lens

What kind of signals or cues from students should we as teachers look for about student understanding?

What did you learn about looking at a teacher’s classroom from watching the video a second time?

Follow up/ reflection questions:

What level was Cathy’s Class?