This paper identifies binary oppositions in the discourse of mathematics education and introduces a binary-epistemic model for (re)conceptualising these oppositions and the epistemic-pedagogic problems they represent. The model is attentive to the contextual relationships between pedagogically relevant binaries (e.g., traditional/progressive,…

Japanese Lesson Study has come under increasing attention from educators in the West and throughout South-East Asia since it was revealed outside Japan through the release of the TIMSS Video Study. In this paper we argue that Japanese Lesson Study provides a model for large scale, sustainable professional development. In particular, we draw on our…

In this article, pre-service teachers' mathematics content knowledge is explored through the analysis of two items about ratio from a Mathematical Competency, Skills and Knowledge Test. Pre-service teachers' thinking strategies, common errors and misconceptions in their responses are presented and discussed. Of particular interest was the range…

In recent times considerable attention has been devoted to the performance of schools and in particular, of students in literacy and numeracy. As part of a national agenda addressing what is portrayed as a crisis in numeracy, and hence mathematics education, governments have introduced a wide range of reform initiatives to improve performance.…

This study examines the communication between pre-service teachers and sixth grade students in a project in which email was used for communication as students learned about fractions and were supported by the pre-service teachers. Specifically, the study investigated how the pre-service teachers applied their mathematical knowledge to understand…

This article presents data from a group of secondary pre-service teachers who used vee diagrams to illustrate their conceptual and methodological analyses of a problem, as part of a required mathematics methods course assignment. The individually constructed vee diagrams were analysed in terms of the extent to which they displayed principles and…

The implementation of a new mathematics syllabus in the elementary context is problematic, especially if it contains a new content area. A professional development model, Transformative Teaching in the Early Years Mathematics (TTEYM) was specifically developed to support the implementation of the new Patterns and Algebra strand. The model was…

This article examines research literature that overlaps the fields of mathematics and special education, with a particular focus on students with disabilities at the middle and high school levels. We report the results of this literature by describing some of the inconsistencies or contradictions between the fields as well as the commonalities…