Abstract
This study explores and compares the predictors for the readiness of future secondary teachers to teach mathematics in Singapore, Taiwan, and the United States, using a hierarchical linear model and multivariate linear regression model. On the basis of data from the Teacher Education and Development Study in Mathematics at the individual and institutional levels, it examines the relationships between the teaching readiness of future teachers and their demographics, entrance quality, motivation, knowledge performance, opportunities to learn (OTLs), and teacher education quality. The findings include that the intrinsic motivation of future teachers to become teachers and their OTL in general education positively predicts their teaching readiness across the three countries. Course consistency in a university and the continuity between university instruction and practicum instruction also positively predict teaching readiness in Taiwan and the United States, respectively.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
A census was conducted in Taiwan. The United States limited its participation to public institutions.
References
Akyüz, G., & Berberoğlu, G. (2010). Teacher and classroom characteristics and their relations to mathematics achievement of the students in the TIMSS. New Horizons in Education, 58(1), 77–95.
Ball, D. L. (1991). Research on teaching mathematics: Making subject-matter knowledge part of the equation. In J. Brophy (Ed.), Advances in research on teaching, Teachers’ knowledge of subject matter as it relates to their teaching practice (Vol. 2, pp. 1–48). Greenwich: JAI Press.
Ball, D. L., Thames, M. H., & Phelps, G. (2008). Content knowledge for teaching: What makes it special? Journal of Teacher Education, 59(5), 389–407.
Blömeke, S., Hsieh, F.-J., Kaiser, G., & Schmidt, W. H. (Eds.). (2014). International perspectives on teacher knowledge, beliefs and opportunities to learn. New York, NY: Springer.
Blömeke, S., Suhl, U., & Kaiser, G. (2011). Teacher education effectiveness: Quality and equity of future primary teachers’ mathematics and mathematics pedagogical content knowledge. Journal of Teacher Education, 60(2), 154–171.
Blömeke, S., Suhl, U., Kaiser, G., & Döhrmann, M. (2012). Family background, entry selectivity and opportunities to learn: What matters in primary teacher education? An international comparison of fifteen countries. Teaching and Teacher Education, 28, 44–55.
Borko, H., Eisenhart, M., Brown, C. A., Underhill, R. G., Jones, D., & Agard, P. C. (1992). Learning to teach hard mathematics: Do novice teachers and their instructors give up too easily? Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 23(3), 194–222.
Casey, C. (2011). Teacher education admission criteria as measure of preparedness for teaching. Canadian Journal of Education, 34(2), 3–20.
Center for Research in Mathematics and Science Education. (2010). Breaking the cycle: An international comparison of U.S. mathematics teacher preparation. East Lansing: Michigan State University.
Coleman, J. S., Campbell, E. Q., Hobson, C. J., McPartland, J., Mood, A. M., Weinfeld, F. D., et al. (1966). Equality of educational opportunity. Washington: US Gov Printing Office.
Cohen, J. (1992). A power primer. Psychological Bulletin, 112(1), 155–159.
Council of Chief State School Officers. (2010). Interstate teacher assessment and support consortium (InTASC) Model core teaching standards: A resource for state dialogue (Draft for public comment). Washington, DC: Council of Chief State School Officers.
Dixon, L. Q. (2005). The bilingual education policy in Singapore: Implications for second language acquisition. In J. Cohen, K. T. McAlister, K. Rolstad, & J. MacSwan (Eds.), Proceedings of the 4th International Symposium on Bilingualism (pp. 625–636). Somerville, MA: Cascadilla Press.
Dolton, P., Marcenaro-Gutierrez, O., Pota, V., Boxser, M., & Pajpani, A. (2013). 2013 Global teacher status index. Retrieved from https://goo.gl/4N6MJU.
Eklöf, H. (2010). Student motivation and effort in the Swedish TIMSS Advanced field study. Paper presented at the IEA International Research Conference. Retrieved from http://www.iea.nl/fileadmin/user_upload/IRC/IRC_2010/Papers/IRC2010_Eklof.pdf.
Ernest, P. (1989). The knowledge, beliefs and attitudes of the mathematics teacher: A model. Journal of Education for Teaching: International Research and Pedagogy, 15(1), 13–33.
Grossman, P. L. (1995). Teachers’ knowledge. In L. W. Anderson (Ed.), International encyclopedia of teaching and teacher education (Vol. 2, pp. 20–24). Oxford, UK: Pergamon Press.
Hill, H. C., Rowan, B., & Ball, D. L. (2005). Effects of teachers’ mathematical knowledge for teaching on student achievement. American Educational Research Journal, 42(2), 371–406.
Hofstede, G. (1986). Cultural differences in teaching and learning. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 10, 301–320.
Hong, J. Y. (2010). Pre-service and beginning teachers’ professional identity and its relation to dropping out of the profession. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26(8), 1530–1543.
Hsieh, F.-J. (2009). Research on the development of the professional ability for teaching mathematics in the secondary school level (3/3) (Rep. No. NSC 96-2522-S-003-008). Taiwan: National Science Council (in Chinese).
Hsieh, F.-J. (2012). Mathematics teaching competence of future secondary mathematics teachers. In F.-J. Hsieh (Ed.), Taiwan TEDS-M 2008 (pp. 119–142). Taipei: Department of Mathematics, National Taiwan Normal University (in Chinese).
Hsieh, F.-J. (2013). Assessing strengths and weaknesses of teacher knowledge in Asia, Eastern Europe, and Western countries-differential item functioning in TEDS-M. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 11(4), 923–947.
Hsieh, F.-J., Law, C. K., Shy, H. Y., Wang, T. Y., Hsieh, C. J., & Tang, S.-J. (2011). Mathematics teacher education quality in TEDS-M—Globalizing the views of future teachers and teacher educators. Journal of Teacher Education, 60(2), 172–187.
Hsieh, F.-J., Lin, P.-J., Chao, G., & Wang, T.-Y. (2013). Chinese Taipei. In J. Schwille, L. Ingvarson, & R. Holdgreve-Resendez (Eds.), TEDS-M encyclopedia, a guide to teacher education context, structure, and quality assurance in 17 countries: Findings from the IEA Teacher Education and Development Study in Mathematics (TEDS-M) (pp. 69–85). Amsterdam: IEA.
Hsieh, F.-J., & Wang, T.-Y. (2012). Mathematics competence of future secondary mathematics teachers. In F.-J. Hsieh (Ed.), Taiwan TEDS-M 2008 (pp. 93–117). Taipei: Department of Mathematics, National Taiwan Normal University (in Chinese).
Hsieh, F.-J., Wang, T.-Y., Hsieh, C.-J., Tang, S.-J., Chao, G., Law, C.-K. et al. (2010). A milestone of an international study in Taiwan teacher education–An international comparison of Taiwan mathematics teacher preparation (Taiwan TEDS-M 2008). Retrived from http://tedsm.math.ntnu.edu.tw/result.htm.
Kaplan, L. S., & Owings, W. A. (2001). Teacher quality and student achievement: Recommendations for principals. NASSP Bulletin, 85(628), 64–73.
Laschke, C. (2013). Effects of future mathematics teachers’ affective, cognitive and socio-demographic characteristics on their knowledge at the end of the teacher education in Germany and Taiwan. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 11(4), 895–921.
Leinhart, G., & Smith, D. A. (1985). Expertise in mathematics instruction: Subject matter knowledge. Journal of Education Psychology, 77(3), 247–217.
Leung, F. K. S. (2006). Mathematics education in East Asia and the West: Does culture matter? In F. K. S. Leung, K.-D. Graf, & F. J. Lopez-Real (Eds.), Mathematics education in different cultural traditions—A comparative study of East Asia and the West (pp. 21–46). New York: Springer.
Markus, H. R., & Kitayama, S. (1991). Culture and the self: Implications for cognition, emotion, and motivation. Psychological Review, 98(2), 224–253.
Martin, M. O., Mullis, I. V. S., & Foy, P. (2008). TIMSS 2007 international mathematics report—Findings from IEA’s Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study at the fourth and eighth grades. Chestnut Hill, MA: TIMSS & PIRLS International Study Center, Lynch School of Education, Boston College.
McDonnell, L. M. (1995). Opportunity to learn as a research concept and a policy instrument. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 17(3), 305–322.
Mentzer, N., & Becker, K. (2010). Academic preparedness as a predictor of achievement in an engineering design challenge. Journal of Technology Education, 22(1), 22–42.
Mullis, I. V. S., Martin, M. O., Gonzalez, E. J., & Chrostowski, S. J. (2004). TIMSS 2003 international mathematics report—Findings from IEA’s Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study at the fourth and eighth grades. Chestnut Hill, MA: TIMSS & PIRLS International Study Center, Lynch School of Education, Boston College.
Mullis, I. V. S., Martin, M. O., Foy, P., & Arora, A. (2012). TIMSS 2011 international mathematics report—Findings from IEA’s Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study at the fourth and eighth grades. Chestnut Hill, MA: TIMSS & PIRLS International Study Center, Lynch School of Education, Boston College.
National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. (2001). NBPTS early childhood generalist standards (2nd ed.). Arlington, VA: NBPTS.
National Center for Education Statistics. (2003). Teaching mathematics in seven countries results from the TIMSS 1999 video study (NCES 2003-013). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2003/2003013.pdf.
National Center for Education Statistics. (2009). Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/timss/video.asp.
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. (2000). Principles and standards for school mathematics. Reston, VA: NCTM.
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2007). OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). Retrieved from http://www.pisa.oecd.org/pages/0,2987,en_32252351_32235731_1_1_1_1_1,00.html.
Parsons, C. A., & Smeeding, T. M. (2006). Immigration and the transformation of Europe. Leiden: Cambridge University Press.
Rice, J. K. (2003). Teacher quality understanding the effectiveness of teacher attributes. Washington, DC: Economic Policy Institute.
Salili, F. (1995). Explaining Chinese students’ motivation and achievement: A socioculutral analysis. In M. L. Maehr & P. R. Pintrich (Eds.), Advances in motivation and achievement: A research annual (Vol. 9, pp. 73–118). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
Schmidt, W. H., Blömeke, S., Tatto, M. T., Hsieh, F.-J., Cogan, L., Houang, R. T., et al. (2011a). Teacher education matters: A study of middle school mathematics teacher preparation in six countries. NY: Teacher College Press.
Schmidt, W. H., Cogan, L., & Houang, R. (2011b). The role of opportunity to learn in teacher preparation: An international context. Journal of Teacher Education, 60(2), 138–153.
Schmidt, W. H., Cogan, L. S., Houang, R. T., & McKnight, C. C. (2011c). Content coverage differences across districts/states: A persisting challenge for U.S. Education policy. American Journal of Education, 117(3), 399–427.
Schmidt, W. H., Houang, R., & Cogan, L. (2012). Preparing future math teachers. Science, 332, 1266–1267.
Schmidt, W. H., Houang, R. T., Cogan, L., Blömeke, S., Tatto, M. T., Hsieh, F.-J., & Paine, L. (2008). Opportunity to learn in the preparation of mathematics teachers: Its structure and how it varies across six countries. ZDM - International Journal on Mathematics Education, 40(5), 735–747.
Shulman, L. S. (1986). Those who understand: Knowledge growth in teaching. Educational Researcher, 15(2), 4–14.
Siu, M. K. (2009). Mathematics education in East Asia from antiquity to modern times. In K. Bjarnadottir, F. Furinghetti, & G. Schubring (Eds.), Dig where you stand: Proceedings of the conference on on-going research in the history of mathematics education (pp. 197–208). Reykjavik: School of Education of University of Iceland.
Stevenson, D. L., & Baker, D. (1992). Shadow education and allocation in formal schooling: Transition to university in Japan. American Journal of Sociology, 97(6), 1639–1657.
Swars, S. L., Smith, S. Z., Smith, M. E., & Hart, L. C. (2009). A longitudinal study of effects of a developmental teacher preparation program on elementary prospective teachers’ mathematics beliefs. Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, 12(1), 47–66.
Tan, J. B., & Yates, S. (2011). Academic expectations as sources of stress in Asian students. Social Psychology of Education: An International Journal, 14(3), 389–407.
Tang, S.-J., & Hsieh, F.-J. (2012). The beliefs of future secondary mathematics teacher. In F.-J. Hsieh (Ed.), Taiwan TEDS-M 2008 (pp. 221–252). Taipei: Department of Mathematics, National Taiwan Normal University (in Chinese).
Tatto, M. T., Schwille, J., Senk, S. L., Ingvarson, L., Rowley, G., Peck, R., et al. (2012). Policy, practice, and readiness to teach primary and secondary mathematics in 17 countries: Findings from the IEA Teacher Education and Development Study in Mathematics (TEDS-M). Amsterdam: IEA.
Tatto, M. T., Schwille, J., Senk, S., Ingvarson, L., Peck, R., & Rowley, G. (2008). Teacher Education and Development Study in Mathematics (TEDS-M): Policy, practice, and readiness to teach primary and secondary mathematics conceptual framework. East Lansing: Teacher Education and Development International Study Center, College of Education, Michigan State University.
Wang, T.-Y., Hsieh, F.-J., & Tang, S.-J. (2014). Predictors of future mathematics teachers’ readiness to teach: A comparison of Taiwan, Germany, and the United States. In Proceedings of the 38th Conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education and the 36th Conference of the North American Chapter of the Psychology of Mathematics Education, Canada (Vol. 5, pp. 345–352).
Wong, K. Y., Lim-Teo, S. K., Lee, N. H., Boey, K. L., Koh, C., Dindyal, J., & Cheng, L. P. (2013). Singapore. In J. Schwille, L. Ingvarson, & R. Holdgreve-Resendez (Eds.), TEDS-M encyclopedia, a guide to teacher education context, structure, and quality assurance in 17 countries: Findings from the IEA Teacher Education and Development Study in Mathematics (TEDS-M) (pp. 193–208). Amsterdam: IEA.
Youngs, P., & Grogan, E. (2013). The United States of America. In J. Schwille, L. Ingvarson, & R. Holdgreve-Resendez (Eds.), TEDS-M encyclopedia, a guide to teacher education context, structure, and quality assurance in 17 countries: Findings from the IEA Teacher Education and Development Study in Mathematics (TEDS-M) (pp. 255–272). Amsterdam: IEA.
Zhu, Y., & Leung, F. K. S. (2011). Motivation and achievement: Is there an East Asian model? International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 9, 1189–1212.
Acknowledgments
We gratefully acknowledge the following: the IEA, the ISC at MSU, the DPC, the ACER, the US NSF, and all the TEDS-M national research coordinators, for sponsoring the international study and providing information and data.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Wang, TY., Hsieh, FJ. (2017). Predictors of the Teaching Readiness of Future Secondary Mathematics Teachers: A Comparison of Singapore, Taiwan, and the United States. In: Son, JW., Watanabe, T., Lo, JJ. (eds) What Matters? Research Trends in International Comparative Studies in Mathematics Education. Research in Mathematics Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51187-0_9
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51187-0_9
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-51185-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-51187-0
eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)