“You just have to take a bit of a risk sometimes”: Breaking the ‘Cycle of Tradition’ in Primary Mathematics

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the mathematics teaching practices of graduates of a pre-service primary/early childhood education program designed to develop teachers’ capacities to implement non-traditional mathematics curricula. As a complementary component of a large survey study of graduate teachers, graduates were interviewed to examine their mathematics teaching practices and influences upon their practices. The teachers indicated they were implementing personally developed, constructivist-oriented curricula, while also acting as curriculum leaders. They also spoke of how aspects of their pre-service education had provided them with the knowledge, skills and confidence to enact their beliefs about effective mathematics teaching.