Perceived effects of supplementary training: a phenomenographic study of math teachers' ongoing development

Abstract

This phenomenographic study entitled “Perceived Effects of Supplementary Training – A Phenomenographic Study of Math Teacher’s Ongoing Development” presents the results of a survey taken by 189 math teachers regarding the perceived impact their supplementary training has had on the quality of their teaching. Five of these teachers were interviewed to provide in-depth data. The author, Robin Wilsson, is a student at the Master Program “Learning and leadership” at the department of Mathematical Sciences at Chalmers University of Technology. The survey contained questions about the types of supplementary training the teachers had participated in, and what their thoughts were on this. Matematiklyftet, a type of supplementary training developed by Skolverket, is of special importance because it aims at involving every math teacher in Sweden. A description of the phenomenographic approach is provided, and this method is used to evaluate the data from two survey questions. The semi-structured interviews are aimed at furthering the data gained from the survey by getting the personal views of teachers. The main conclusion is that Matematiklyftet was well received by the teachers involved in the study, and that supplementary training using similar methods should be implemented. Other conclusions include the fact that few of the teachers regard their official supplementary training as being effective, and that they wish to find new ways of teaching without using a text book.