Reflections from a Secondary School Mathematics Teacher’s Professional Development: Implementation the Skill of Noticing in Teaching Fractions

Abstract

. The skill of noticing includes that involves the abilities to identify noteworthy situations in the classroom, to interpret these situations, and to put forward suggestions on what to do in these situations. This action research study reflects the process in which a secondary school mathematics teacher activated her noticing skill through the video recordings of her own teaching practices. The aim of the
study is to examine how the use of the noticing skill in her teaching contributes to the student recognition knowledge and professional development. The study data were obtained from the teaching practices in 24 lesson hours of operations with fractions and the subsequent lesson analysis diaries. The data from the lesson analysis diaries were subjected to content analysis. This implementation allowed the teacher to notice different ways of student thinking; to identify students’ mistakes and learning difficulties, and reflect on the causes of these difficulties; and to improve her own teaching in this light. Suggestions for fraction teaching are given based on the research results.