Challenging teacher attitudes about math ¹

At-A-Glance

Current behavior:

Teachers cover the material quickly, assuming some students will inherently get it while others will not, and don’t spend time catering to those who they assume will not get it.

Desired behavior:

Teachers believe all students can succeed at math, and therefore encourage all students to explore, experiment, and take risks.

Change approach:

Interactive online courses, in-person sessions, peer network meetings, and individual coaching focused on changing both mindsets and specific practices.

Impact:

Teachers changed their attitudes and classroom practices, leading students to change their attitudes as well. Ultimately, student test scores rose by an average of eight points, with the largest gains among female students, English Language Learners, and students from low socio-economic backgrounds.

Implications for implementing partners:

Use “welcome news” to change beliefs and provide ample time for processing complex emotions and identity shifts; consider when online modules might suffice as the primary intervention mode.

Implications for supporting partners:

Conduct research on which behaviors are tied to beliefs that can be changed via “welcome news.”

Fifth-grade math teachers from a California school district participated in a program to challenge their attitudes and approach to math instruction. The program included interactive online courses (which constitute the core of the program), in-person sessions, peer network meetings, and individual coaching over a three-year period.

The program’s central aim was to challenge misconceptions about how math is learned (such as the idea that some people are “math people” and others are destined to struggle with math) by teaching the neuroscience of how humans learn math. Since most teachers want to believe all their students can succeed, this was framed as encouraging welcome news and was a belief that was relatively easy to change. The program realized this would be a personal and emotionally charged issue for educators who have devoted their career to math instruction, and provided opportunities for teachers to reflect, journal about, and discuss their personal responses to this shift. One teacher recalled the identity shift the program entailed, saying “I thought it was going to be great for the kids, I never expected it to change me, that’s been my greatest revelation in all of it.”

The program included time for teachers to reflect on and discuss the emotional and identity shifts entailed. “I thought it was going to be great for the kids, I never expected it to change me, that’s been my greatest revelation in all of it,” one teacher said.

The program changed teachers’ beliefs about math and student potential. The online course included suggestions for practical teaching changes in a way that gave teachers latitude about how to implement new practices in their classrooms. Classroom observations and self-reported behavior surveys indicate that teachers modified their behaviors to incorporate the five types of activities promoted by the program.

Finally, these changes in teacher attitudes and practices appear to have made a difference with their students, even after the program’s first year. Across the pre- and post- surveys, students reported an increased belief in growth mindsets for math. Students’ math scores rose by an average of eight points on the Smarter Balanced state test. Female students, English language learners, and students from low socio-economic backgrounds appeared to make the largest gains thanks to the program.