It鈥檚 almost a truism that students鈥� success in mathematics significantly influences their career choices and readiness for careers in STEM. But are secondary school teachers sufficiently prepared to support students鈥� learning of mathematics?
Dr. Rina Zazkis, professor in the Faculty of Education and Tier 1 Canada Research Chair (term until 2030) in STEM Teaching and Learning, believes there are gaps in research about the preparation, knowledge, and practice of secondary mathematics teachers, even as university-level mathematics teaching continues to gain attention. In July 2024, as at the 15th International Congress on Mathematical Education in Sydney, Australia, Dr. Zazkis focused on connecting undergraduate mathematics to mathematics taught in schools by highlighting the interplay between her own teaching and research in mathematics education. She described how pedagogical tasks can 鈥渦nveil the related mathematical knowledge of teachers, exemplify the use of such tasks in research, and demonstrate how subsequent instructional choices build upon and expand teachers鈥� knowledge whilst highlighting links between tertiary and school mathematics.鈥�
Dr. Zazkis鈥檚 scholarship and academic service exemplify her commitment to exploring interrelationships between pedagogy and research to enhance mathematics education for teachers and close the gaps between secondary and university-level mathematics education. She is a recipient of multiple grants, including ten major SSHRC awards (six SSHRC standard grants and three SSHRC Insight grants). She considers it a highlight to have served as editor-in-chief for the Journal of Mathematical Behaviour and as editor of the Canadian Journal for Science Mathematics and Technology Education, and has published prolifically on topics that often concern challenges faced by mathematics educators and the need for creative and innovative approaches in teacher education. Notably, most of Dr. Zazkis鈥檚 recent work is co-authored with post-doctoral fellows or graduate students, whom she strongly believes in supporting. As she puts it, 鈥淚n co-authored publications, my name is always last.鈥�
Dr. Zazkis continues to investigate mathematics teacher preparation through her third SSHRC Insight-funded project, 鈥淐apitalizing on Teachers鈥� Mathematical Knowledge: Towards Enhanced Teaching Practice.鈥� Her focus is on prospective and practising teachers, teacher educators, and mathematicians, who are invited to consider not only how they use their knowledge but what they see as its potential usage.
Dr. Zazkis originally developed the notion of 鈥渓esson play鈥� in teacher education alongside the conventional 鈥渓esson plan.鈥� She extended this notion to more general scriptwriting, used not only in mathematics education but more recently in science education (as detailed in 鈥溾�� (with Dr. Marina Milner鈥怋olotin in Future in Educational Research, 2024). Concerned that components of a typical lesson plan leave 鈥渘o room鈥� for considering a teacher's response to students' expected errors, misconceptions, or questions, Dr. Zazkis sees scriptwriting as a way to better prepare mathematics teachers through creating dialogues 鈥渄epicting an imaginary interaction between a teacher and students.鈥� For teachers in STEM and mathematics in particular, she stresses the importance of teaching is 鈥渁n inherently creative activity that requires teachers to observe their students' struggles, attend to their questions, and consider various approaches to support them.鈥�
The methodological approach of scriptwriting is further developed and described in in Mathematical Thinking and Learning, of introducing 鈥渁 scripting journey鈥� where students record their collaborative work on a particular mathematical problem in the form of a dialogue among problem solvers.
As a variation of narrative inquiry that effectively helps prepare prospective mathematics teachers, scriptwriting serves another primary goal of Dr. Zazkis鈥檚 research: to raise awareness of the connections between disciplinary mathematics and school mathematics. 鈥淎 teacher鈥檚 and/or teacher educator鈥檚 awareness of these connections,鈥� she says, 鈥渃an empower individuals and benefit instructional situations,鈥� enhancing their preparedness for teaching secondary-level mathematics.