Texas Mathematics Teacher Spring/Summer 2020 - 11

Math Workshop: A Way to Promote Mathematical Literacy through Language and Literacy
Practices in the Secondary Grades
Nina: Open up your math journals and title today's
page "Slope." Write down anything you can
remember from last year about slope. You've got two
minutes. [Students wrote in their math journals.]
Nina: Ok, now take turns sharing with your partner
what you wrote in your math journal. As you listen to
what your partner wrote, see if they had something
that you didn't. Be sure you add this information to
your math journal. You have two minutes to share.
[Students shared their writings with their peer
partners and added additional information to their
journals, if needed.]
Successful Implementation of Math Workshop
All three participants expressed a myriad of ways in
which they could implement math workshop successfully
in the form of affordances and constraints. For example,
Leslie noted that math workshop afforded students the
opportunity to learn through mistakes:
I always tell my class that mistakes are proof that
you're trying. Most kids don't want to make mistakes
in math. But, I explain to them that that is how their
brain works. If we don't make mistakes, the brain
can't grow.
Nina shared that implementing math workshop has
enhanced her use of language and literacy practices
during instruction. Compared to traditional mathematics
instruction, Nina acknowledged that she spends more
time planning for math workshop lessons "to make sure
that the questions are right, or that the opening is right, to
get students where I need them to think and know what I
need them to know." Nina noted, "Every year I grow with
how I question students and plan lessons to make them
think more."
Similar to Nina, Mona commented that the amount
of time she spends in planning lessons has increased
dramatically with math workshop. However, Mona
credited her success with instructional planning to her
fellow colleagues who also use math workshop. "I have
an amazing team who are each well-versed with math
workshop. We figured out where each person's strengths
were and divided up the lesson planning among the
team."
Lastly, all three participants mentioned a couple of
constraints they experience with implementing math
workshop. First, each participant recognized time as a
challenge. For example, Nina shared that she sometimes
struggles with addressing the final component of math
workshop, sharing and reflection time:
Sometimes we're just so busy during work time.
When students get into the deeper problems and are
really thinking, I am tempted to give them more time
instead of transitioning to sharing and reflection time.
But, I know that the reflection piece is so important.
Therefore, I have to do better and make sure that I
provide students with time to share and reflect.
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All three participants also admitted that giving students
control of their learning was a challenge they encountered
when they first began implementing math workshop. For
instance, Leslie recalled:
When I first started using math workshop, my
greatest fear was turning students loose during work
time. There is so much new information you have to
give them in 6th grade! I remember feeling that if I
give them time to discover during work time, then I
might not get the same bang for my buck as I would
with just disseminating the information.
Discussion and Implications
Despite the recent emphasis on effective mathematics
pedagogical practices, mathematics instruction in
the secondary grades tends to rely on traditional
approaches where the teacher transmits information to
students (Miller, 2010). In order to obtain higher levels
of mathematical achievement from every student, it is
vital for middle- and high-school mathematics teachers
to "enter 21st century classrooms" knowledgeable
of "literacy-based strategies or scaffolds to aid in
exploring, resolving, and reflecting on real problems in
mathematics" (Colwell & Enderson, 2016, p. 72). Math
workshop appears to provide secondary mathematics
teachers with an instructional framework that reinforces
this pedagogical paradigm shift in mathematics by
promoting mathematical literacy through language and
literacy practices in the secondary grades. Moreover,
math workshop supports the enactment of research-based
mathematics teaching practices (NCTM, 2014). Findings
from the current study have contributed valuable
insights to an under-researched area and have pointed
to important implications for stakeholders involved with
preservice and inservice teacher education.
Preservice Teacher Education
Teacher educators typically introduce preservice
secondary mathematics teachers to aspects of language
and literacy practices in required content literacy
coursework (Bean, 1997; Friedland et al., 2011). Such
courses have customarily focused on study skills
and the use of reading skills and strategies, such as
comprehension, decoding, fluency, and vocabulary,
within the content areas (Hynd-Shanahan, 2013; Shanahan
& Shanahan, 2008, 2012). However, this preparation
approach fails to develop deep understandings of
mathematical literacy among preservice secondary
mathematics teachers (Masuda, 2014) and leaves them
feeling "uncertain as to how to effectively integrate such
practices into their teaching, particularly when working
with diverse or struggling learners" (Colwell & Enderson,
2016, p. 71).

"Math workshop appears to provide secondary

mathematics teachers with an instructional
framework that reinforces this pedagogical paradigm
shift in mathematics by promoting mathematical
literacy through language and literacy practices in
the secondary grades."
Spring/Summer 2020

| 11
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Texas Mathematics Teacher Spring/Summer 2020

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