Teaching Problems and the Problems of Teaching

by Magdalene Lampert

In this fascinating book, an experienced classroom teacher takes us into her fifth-grade math class through the course of a year and shows how classroom dynamics―the complex relationship of teacher, student, and content―are critical in improving student performance. Magdalene Lampert offers an original model of teaching practice that casts new light on the ways teachers can successfully deal with teaching problems.
“Although the setting is mathematics, the value of Lampert’s book is broad, addressing the core issues that face anyone in education. This is one of the most important books about education to appear in the past decade. What Lampert writes is deep and compelling. The story is engaging, even gripping; I couldn’t put it down.”―Jim Stigler, author of The Learning Gap
“Marvellous insight into the teacher’s craft. . . . A well-crafted, modest, richly pleasurable, even gripping, book, that says more about the challenges and pleasures of teaching (and learning) than a host of manuals could. You don’t need to be a mathematics teacher to enjoy it, although once you have read it, you may wish you were. Excellent.”―Michael Duffy, Times Educational Supplement
“This book should be required reading for researchers of mathematics teaching, for teacher educators, and for teachers who wish to develop into reflective practitioners.”―Erna Yackel, Journal of Research in Mathematics Education
“This very readable book is invaluable for teacher preparation colleges.”― Choice

Genres: Education, Nonfiction, Mathematics, Teaching

512 pages, Paperback

First published August 11, 2001

Reviews

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great book for all math teachers. Lampert talks about how she teaches math and all of the different things teachers have to keep in mind while they are teaching: whole group instruction, assessment, diversity, covering the curriculum, and teaching students how to be successful in her classroom and in school in general. Her writing is professional and helpful without being overly prescriptive. She includes transcripts from individual lessons and "zooms in" on specific moments with specific students. Such an interesting read; I am very motivated by her writing, and I hope to organize my math classroom more like hers in the future.

[Marsha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant and full of ideas to improve my practice.

[Leah Boylan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very useful if you work in the fields of curriculum development, coaching, administration, or teaching of math. Lampert is really good at taking these firm edges we’ve defined of what school/learning means, what makes a good teacher, what school is about, and blurring them. She talks a lot about intellectual courage and who her students are as people, which I now see the crucial-ness of. Most of all I appreciate how Lampert is able to take this vague notion of what teaching is, and complicate the hell out of it.

[Marie-Sharrane]

Is it possible to teach students mathematics through problems while also teaching to the standards and teaching a variety of skills? It is possible and a lot of work to undertake in order to make this successful.

[Harsa Wara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very enlightening, not only for mathematics, but also for all

[Margaret Boling]

6/7/11 ** I've read 3 chapters and believe this book will be very useful. The author draws on her knowledge as a 5th grade math teacher and a university researcher to present a model of math instruction based on the students' exploration of problems - an inquiry-driven approach in which the instruction of basic algorithms and concepts is embedded. While there is probably too much 'research jargon' for most teachers, I find that much of that can be skimmed over, if desired. The description of the math lessons is fascinating.

This book was recommended to me at the Discourse Analysis conference that I went to several weeks ago. I thought that it would help me learn more about teaching math through an inquiry perspective. Lampert positions herself as a teacher-researcher and had the enormous advantage of only teaching math with the students in this class. She gathered a tremendous amount of data over the course of the year and this book is the result of the analysis.

[Adelaide · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this book, because it was recommended on the Boston Teacher Residency blog. It turned out to be much more dense and less generalizable than I expected. Instead of coming away with broad principles or practices to try, I learned the most from small vignettes that showed student-teacher interactions or how Lampert chose to write comments on students' work. The process of reading felt more like a classroom observation than a lecture.

[Ilib4kids]

fifth-grade maths class of observation.