This study explores the impact that co-designing a virtual manipulative,
Fractions Lab, had on teachers’ professional development. Tapping into an existing
community of practice of mathematics specialist teachers, the study identifies how a
cooperative enquiry approach utilising workshops and school-based visits challenged 23
competent primary school teachers’ technological, pedagogical and content knowledge of
fraction equivalence, addition and subtraction. Verbal and written data from the workshops
alongside observations and interviews from the school visits were analysed using the
technological, pedagogical and content knowledge (TPACK) framework. The findings
show that the assumptions of even experienced teachers were challenged when Fractions
Lab was shared as an artefact on which they were asked to co-design and subsequently
interact with, using it in subsequent phases of the cooperative inquiry process. Two
original aspects of successful co-design of virtual manipulatives through communities of
practice are identified and offered to others: (1) careful bootstrapping of the first design
iteration that gathers intelligence about the content area and the technological affordances
and constraints available; and (2) involvement of highly motivated teachers who perceive
themselves as agents of change in the domain area.

j298

Perpustakaan FITK Pusat

Tersedia

• Supporting teachers’ technological pedagogical content knowledge of fractions through co-designing a virtual manipulative

Share :