Following a Teacher’s Mathematical and Scientific Noticing Across Career Progression from Field Experiences to Classroom Teaching

In this study, we focus on one preservice teacher’s noticing of students’ mathematical and scientific thinking with an emphasis on how the acts of attending and interpreting can influence decisions about pedagogical actions. The study centers on an innovative field experience approach that incorporates lesson study in order to emphasize students’ thinking and its impact. Consequently, we were interested in understanding how one teacher made decisions based on her noticing at three points in her career: preservice field experiences, student teaching, and her first-year teaching. We used a case study approach to focus on one preservice teacher. Findings indicate that scaffolding PSTs to notice students’ mathematical and scientific thinking influenced how she noticed and considered students’ thinking while teaching. Results further indicate that supporting the development of noticing during field experiences has a positive impact on a teacher when she was in her own classroom. The study provides a unique contribution to the field as it incorporates both the mathematics and science teaching practices of the same PST from her teacher education experience into her career.