By Barbara Trujillo Presentation for CEMELA Symposium January 17, 2009 Center for the Mathematics...

by Barbara TrujilloPresentation for CEMELA Symposium

January 17, 2009

Center for the Mathematics Education of Latinos/as

Brokering Mathematics Reform:

How Principals at Predominantly Hispanic Schools Conceive of Their Leadership

Roles in the Implementation of Reform Mathematics

Research Question:

• How do principals in predominantly Hispanic schools conceive of their leadership roles in the implementation of a district-wide reform mathematics curriculum?


Sub-questions

• How are their conceptions influenced by:•

a.their own ideas of mathematics teaching and learning, including the role of language and culture in content teaching

b.the performance of Hispanic students in mathematics,

c.their interpretation of state and district mandates for mathematics,

d.their interactions with teachers, students and parents around mathematics?

The Problem

• “The problem of scale” (Cobb and Smith, 2008).

• Accountability movement provides “press”, but does not address ways to transform teaching. (Flores, 2007; NCES, 2008).

• Literature on instructional leadership mostly prescriptive (Burch & Spillane, 2005).

• Only small body of empirical research on principals and math reform.

• No research specific to principal leadership and Hispanic students’ opportunities to learn in mathematics.


Purpose of Study

To develop a deeper understanding of how principals conceive of the complex and critical role of principal leadership in the implementation of a reform mathematics curriculum in predominantly Hispanic schools in an era of accountability.


Purpose of Study

• To add to a developing body of research that considers principals’ beliefs and ideas about the teaching and learning of mathematics in an era of reform.

•

• To better understand how their conceptions translate into leadership actions to support the reforms

• To understand how principals negotiate or broker between the reforms within their schools and the curriculum, accountability and equity demands tied to mathematics that come from the district, state and federal levels.

Significance of study

• Adds to current studies on effective leadership for mathematics reform (Nelson & Sassi, Cobb & Smith)

• Different demographic and focus on Hispanic learner Existing studies in Northeast Existing research does not consider opportunities to learn

• Better understanding of leaders’ conceptions of reform may help inform distsrict support for principals.


Theoretical Lens: Conceptions

• Notion of principals’ conceptions is based on A. G. Thompson’s (1992, p. 130) definition:

Conscious or subconscious beliefs, concepts, meanings, rules, mental images, and preferences concerning the discipline of mathematics. Impacted by reflection.

Also includes knowledge of mathematics.(Also supported by P. Ernest, 1988.)

Literature Review:

• Informed by four bodies of research Instructional Leadership

Mathematics Reform - a paradigm shift

Equity in Mathematics Teaching and Learning, including the impact of the Accountability Movement

Instructional Leadership and Mathematics Reform (LCK)


Instructional Leadership Domains

1. Focus on long term changes to instructional core.

2. Emphasize collaboration and communication.

3. Maximize resources

4. Create a safe and open environment for inquiry.

5. Participate “frequently and meaningfully in classrooms” (Supovitz & Poblinco, p. 12).

6. Orchestrate systemic performance accountability.

7. Hold high expectations and provide strong support for all students.

Literature Review - Mathematics Reform - a paradigm shift

• Challenges for teachers, challenges for leaders - a paradigm shift - instrumentalism vs. constructivism.

Must address teachers’ beliefs and understandings about the teaching and learning of mathematics, including their own mathematical understandings

Professional development that is intensive, collaborative, sustained, and involves reflective practice

Must include holding teachers accountable for implementing reforms.

Leadership also needs to understand reform teaching in order to know what to look for in classrooms

Requires: infrastructure for reform

(Von Glaserfeld, Romberg, Thompson, Hoover, Hersh; Spillane & Zeuli, 1999;Ma, 1999; Reys, Reys,Tarr, & Chavez, 2006; Kazemi & Franke, 2004; Ball,2004; Ball & Bass, 2001; Ball & Cohen, 1996; Ball,Thames & Phelps, 2007.)


. . . Infrastructure for reform

• Addresses what the work is about: The subject matter How teachers “socialize students into the world of literate knowers

of mathematics” How students learn mathematics, including typical challenges and

misconceptions

• Addresses how the work gets done: Community of inquiry

Collaboration Reflection Looking at student work

Ongoing sustained focused professional development to develop content knowledge for teaching mathematics (Ball).

• Single initiative (St. John, et al.)

Ball,Elliott & KazemiKazemi & Franke,

Principal leadership and mathematics reform: A theoretical stance

Leadership Content Knowledge (LCK)

• The relationship between instructional leadership and knowledge of how mathematics is learned and how it is taught. (Nelson & Sassi, 2005; Stein & Nelson, 2003).

• Transforming subject matter knowledge for the purposes of providing leadership for instructional reform.

• Includes elements from both learning and accountability views of leadership.

Leadership Content Knowledge

Teachers Students

Subject Matter

Principals Teachers

Adult Professionals

District Leaders

LCK - How is my study additive?

Leadership Content Knowledge (Stein & Nelson, 2003; Nelson & Sassi, 2005)

How beliefs and understandings about teaching and learning of mathematics impact principal decisions and actions.

Principals’ knowledge of math + ideas about learning and teaching

Lenses on Learning principal professional development (Grant, Nelson, Stein)

• Aim to influence principals’ thinking about math ed. reform

East coast schools - several long-term studies

Focus on supervision of instruction, looking at classroom inquiry and student thinking

Did not consider language, culture, SES


Literature Review - Principal Leadership and Mathematics Reform

High math content knowledge

low math content knowledge

Constructivist viewsInstrumentalist views

Principal leadership as instrumentalist or constructivist (Buonopane, 2006) independent of mathematics content knowledge.

Literature Review - Principal Leadership and Mathematics Reform

• Principals’ conceptions of locus of mathematics expertise matters. (Burch & Spillane)

• Principal role in “scale-up” (Cobb & Smith, 2008)

includes: Brokering district “vision and mandates” with

teacher “capacity”. Setting the expectations for implementation

fidelity. Development of communities of practice and

teacher support networks

Literature Review - Equity and mathematics reform

Framework of inequities (Berry, 2005; Moll & Diaz, 1993; Wenglinsky, 2004)

View as Opportunity Gap or Achievement Gap (Flores, 2006)

Leverage mathematical understanding through connections to everyday lives of students - context matters (Celedón-Pattichis, 2004; Lee, 2008)

Language matters - level of cognitive demand determines level of language supports. Do teachers have training?

Providing all teachers sufficient and specific opportunities to learn pedagogy of language and culture in mathematics teaching and learning (Cohen & Ball, Khisty).


Research Design

• Qualitative “collective case-study” (Creswell, 2007) Within case analysis to analysis of themes across cases Narratives of principals as they reflect on practice, beliefs,

interpretations. Produces context-dependent knowledge - “a nuanced view of

reality” (Flyvbjerg, 2006, p. 223) Interpretive lens - entangled with social and historical context of

experience (Webster cited in Buonopane, 2006)

• Extends background pilot study, August 2007 - present

• Researcher bias My own lens and background as principal and researcher


Site and participant selection

• Relatively small district with high Hispanic and ELL population

• Unique “southwest” location with case significance due to immigrant and low SES Hispanic population.

• District adoption of mathematics reform curricula Superintendent part of data-driven leadership project (OEA) Changes in support structures for teachers

• 3 predominantly Hispanic Elementary Schools with common “feeder” middle school.


Site profiles

Camino Real Elementary School

Sands Elementary Tomasita Elementary

Principal/years at site

Ms. White – 2nd year Ms. Rojas – 8th year Mr. Torres - 2nd year

Grades K-6th K-6th (was 5th-6th until 2007)

Pre-K – 6th (was Pre-K – 4th until last year)

# Students 379 513 496

% Hispanic 66% 86% 84%

% ELL 8% 58% 50%

% FRL 62% 86% 80%

AYP status Made AYP Restructuring 2 (Have not made AYP 4 years

Did not make AYP for 1st time.

SBA math scores

27% proficient 24% of 6th graders proficient

Bilingual math teachers

None One at each grade level, approach varies

One at each grade level

Participants

Principal 1: 2nd year, was AP at feeder middle school, bilingual certification, taught 6th grade mathematics. Hispanic, some Spanish. NM native. Enjoys mathematics.

Principal 2: 12th year, 8th at school with 100% FRL, 50% ELL. Taught pre-school and was IEP coordinator previously. Anglo from midwest. Not a “math person”. Does not recognize curriculum.

Principal 3: 2nd year, taught 4th, 5th grade, Hispanic, Bilingual certification, some Spanish. NM native, “comfortable with mathematics”.


Data Collection

• Survey principals Mathematics knowledge LCK

• 3 formal interviews - taped Subject/curriculum

knowledge Student learning Teacher learning/support District requirements and

expectations

• Classroom observations with principal (follow-up interview, non-taped)

• Field notes from site visits

• Conversations with district personnel

• Teacher survey (Survey Monkey, 2006)

Focus of data collection tools is components of LCK: content knowledge, student-teacher, teacher learning, district

expectations.

Focus of data collection tools is components of LCK: content knowledge, student-teacher, teacher learning, district

expectations.


Methods: Data Analysis

• Coding for themes

• Thick description -”nuanced view of reality” (Flyvbjerg, 2006) in deep context of each case.

• Look for similarities and differences and trends across cases.

• Analyze trends within and across cases.

• Need to think more about how to analyze and code this as “broker” role.


Limitations:

• My participation has an effect.• Validity - important to be open to

what is revealed, not what is expected.

• Isolated windows of time• Represents only a small sample of

principals - not generalizable.


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