Transforming secondary mathematics classroom practice through participatory action research

This is a Centre for Research in Mathematics Education seminar

Presented by Dr Peter Wright, UCL Institute of Education, University College London

During this seminar, I will focus on the potential of participatory action research (PAR) for bringing about sustainable and widespread changes in the classroom practice of secondary mathematics teachers. I will argue that PAR offers mathematics teachers a means for transforming their classroom practice and actualising a curriculum that is more meaningful and empowering for students, and leads to more equitable outcomes and a lifelong engagement with the subject.

 I will reflect on my doctoral study (Wright, 2017), which demonstrated how a small group of early-career teacher researchers, working in partnership with an academic researcher, were able to significantly transform their thinking and classroom practice through adopting a systematic, rigorous and critical model of PAR. I will propose (for discussion) how a model of PAR, with an explicit focus on collaboration and critical reflection, might be developed that can transform classroom practice on a longer-term and wider scale.

Wright, P., 2017. Critical relationships between teachers and learners of school mathematics. Pedagogy, Culture and Society [Online]