ERIC Number: ED562980
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2014
Pages: 16
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Teacher-Led Math Inquiry in Belize: A Cluster Randomized Trial
Hinerman, Krystal M.; Hull, Darrell M.; Chen, Qi; Booker, Dana D.; Naslund-Hadley, Emma I.
Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness
In Belize, the percentage of untrained teachers (i.e. teachers with the equivalent of a high school education or less) is one of the highest in the region of Latin America and the Caribbean. In response to growing student cohorts, the increased demand for more classroom teachers has led to significant decrease in the proportion of trained teachers at both the primary and secondary levels. Fewer than 45% of teachers at primary and secondary levels are trained, whereas some countries in the region report more than 80% are trained. Perhaps as a result of the lack of training, a content test that was applied to a representative sample of teachers nationwide as part of this study design revealed important gaps in teachers' math content knowledge. The authors hypothesized that increased math content and pedagogical skill enhancement of teachers would lead to improved student outcomes on content knowledge in mathematics. The Teacher-Led Math Inquiry (TLMI) project posed three research questions: 1.When controlling for pretest differences, do students exposed to the TLMI treatment exhibit higher post-treatment math achievement than students in the control group at the end of one school year? (Intent to treat model); 2. To what extent does implementation fidelity as an added variable in the ITT model moderate post-treatment math achievement? (Test of treatment model); and 3. How did teachers view implementation of the TLMI approach? (Qualitative results). The present study indicates TLMI has a substantive significant positive effect on student math performance in comparison to traditional instructional practices in Belize, specifically in the Belize District. Tables are appended.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Mathematics Instruction, Randomized Controlled Trials, Teacher Education, Pedagogical Content Knowledge, Mathematics Achievement, Pretests Posttests, Inquiry, Control Groups, Experimental Groups, Comparative Analysis, Program Implementation, Fidelity, Predictor Variables, Teacher Attitudes, Qualitative Research, Elementary School Teachers, Program Effectiveness, Demography, Observation, Mentors, Hierarchical Linear Modeling, Regression (Statistics)
Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness. 2040 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208. Tel: 202-495-0920; Fax: 202-640-4401; e-mail: inquiries@sree.org; Web site: http://www.sree.org
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Numerical/Quantitative Data
Education Level: Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness (SREE)
Identifiers - Location: Belize
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A