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Mathematics, B.S.

Advisor: Dr. Christine Clayton

School of Education, Pace University

Document Type

Thesis

Abstract

This study was conducted in an effort to find out how modern-day secondary math teachers respond to errors in their classrooms and the reasonings behind their responses. To fulfill the purpose of this study, various methods of research were used to gather information. Methods included looking into the scholarly sources surrounding the topic as well as a primary-conducted study in the field. Participants of this study were high school math teachers. The participants engaged in two semi-structured interviews (an initial and a debrief) as well as an observation that was conducted during one of their classes. Through the initial interview, teachers shared their views on errors and error correction in their classrooms. The observation served as a controlled component to see first-hand how the participants respond to errors during normal instruction. The debrief allowed the participants to reflect on how they addressed specific errors during the observation and why they responded in a given way. The majority of the scholarly research surrounding this topic focused on teachers’ views on errors, the reasoning behind teachers’ responses, and different types of responses for specific error situations. The results from this research indicate that teachers respond to errors in various ways; whether the response is student-centered or content-centered. Teacher responses are heavily influenced by their views on errors as well as their efforts to use the error as an opportunity for learning while not harming students’ academic confidence.

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