TIMMS Video Studies
See also: desirable-difficulties, productive-failure, teaching-mathematics, explicit-versus-inquiry
1995 and 1999 projects in which researchers video recorded and analysed lessons taught by mathematics teachers from across the world.
US versus Japan#
Hanford (2015) offers detailed descriptions of TIMMS research comparing the teaching of mathematics in the Japan and the US. Japanese students were performing better on international benchmarks suggesting that approach was more effective.
| Country | Approach name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| US | learning terms and practicing procedures | Teachers present definitions and demonstrate procedures for solving specific problems. Students memorise these and repeat. |
| Japan | structured problem solving | Students develop, explain, and justify their own methods for solving a problem from the teacher. The teacher guides students through the discussion of mathematics behind each idea. |
References#
Hanford, E. (2015). An American way of teaching. APM Reports. https://www.apmreports.org/episode/2015/08/27/an-american-way-of-teaching