In terms of those places where I struggled, this experience of leading a formative task helped me to re-interpret course concepts. Specifically, it prompted me to re-interpret the course concepts and my own beliefs of acknowledging students\u2019 mathematical contributions regardless of whether they are right or wrong. Too often, how teachers respond to their students\u2019 answers can unconsciously message for them what is valid or invalid mathematical thinking (Battey et al., 2018, p. 437). For my practices, I have also unconsciously messaged to my students that some answers were more valid than others by often filling in for them when they struggled. I did not provide the space for my students to engage agentively and deeply with these mathematical concepts. Instead, I continued perpetuating traditional mechanisms of exclusion as a gatekeeper of who was and was not a \u201cmath person.\u201d I privileged the answer above all else and did not allow my students to make mistakes and delve deeper into the problem (Hiebert et al., 1997, p. 39). I moved away from the main concept underlying this whole semester of thinking about mathematics more fluidly and expansively. Even more, I moved away from the idea of creating an environment where the goal is productive struggle and learning from mistakes to lead to greater and deeper understanding (Boaler, 2015, p. 18). Likewise, this experience helped me re-interpret the course concepts as I was forced to confront my biases and how my feelings about math will impact how I will enact and think about these concepts. I truly believe in moving away from the right answer in mathematics and focusing more on the struggle. However, I must unlearn how I was taught math to apply this belief in my classroom. In sum, this experience showed me it is not enough to learn and internalize these concepts as right. I also need to reflect more actively and intentionally on the ramifications of my practices and how I can reframe my understanding of math to embody and create a classroom environment where mistakes are welcomed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In terms of those places where I struggled, this experience of leading a formative task helped me to re-interpret course concepts. Specifically, it prompted me to re-interpret the course concepts and my own beliefs of acknowledging students\u2019 mathematical contributions regardless of whether they are right or wrong. Too often, how teachers respond to their students\u2019 … <\/p>\n