A design experiment where students in Grade 5 (11-12 years old) play the Color Run game constitutes the context for investigating how students can be introduced to informal hypothesis testing. The result outlines a three-step hypothetical learning trajectory on informal hypothesis testing. In the first step, students came to favor sample space…

Recent research suggests the benefits of supporting a progressive understanding of concepts of inference prior to the teaching of procedures and formal calculations through the study of informal statistical inference (ISI). To contribute to the growing knowledge about the early learning and teaching of statistics, particularly regarding the…

Measurement is a critical component of mathematics education, but research on the learning and teaching of measurement is limited. We previously introduced, refined, and validated a developmental progression -- the cognitive core of a learning trajectory -- for length measurement in the early years. A complete learning trajectory includes…

Learning progressions have become an important construct in educational research, in part because of their ability to inform the design of coherent standards, curricula, assessments, and instruction. In this paper, I discuss how a learning progressions approach has guided our development of an early algebra innovation for the elementary grades and…

This study explores a spatial reasoning learning trajectory of a student with difficulty in mathematics. Using a teaching experiment methodology across 15 instructional sessions, we observed how the student responded to instruction based on an established 2D shape composition learning trajectory (Sarama & Clements, 2009). A narrative…

Learning emphasizing fractions as a part-whole concept causes several limitations in developing fraction knowledge and inhibits proportional reasoning. We use fractions as quotients as the first context introduced in our learning trajectory. We report the teaching experiment results using the improved learning trajectory on thirty 4th grade…

Learning Trajectories have the potential to be used as a tool to advance equity by explicitly connecting to anti-deficit framing and asset-based instruction. This plenary paper highlights research on three use cases for learning trajectories (LT) with an intentionality around promoting equity: 1) the use of LT based Lesson Study with vertical…

We describe here lessons learned in designing an early algebra curriculum to measure early algebra's impact on children's algebra readiness for middle grades. The curriculum was developed to supplement regular mathematics instruction in Grades K-5. Lessons learned centered around the importance of several key factors, including using conceptual…

Learning trajectories are built upon progressions of mathematical understandings that are typical of the general population of students. As such, they are useful frameworks for exploring how understandings of diverse learners may be similar or different from their peers, which has implications for tailoring instruction. The purpose of this…

Historically, reforms designed to transform teaching from rote, teacher-centered instruction to progressive student-centered instruction have had varied levels of success. Plentiful research juxtaposes teachers' enacted instruction with the instructional ideals of reform efforts to determine the extent to which teachers' instruction aligns with…