Lesson Study: A Site for Teachers ’ Professional Growth and Use of Instructional

This paper presents the findings of a lesson study research project undertaken by a team of teachers and researchers in the Center for the Mathematics Education of Latinos/as. We examined changes in teachers ’ understanding of mathematical content and of teaching mathematics to Latino/a students while incorporating in their instructional practices students ’ linguistic and sociocultural resources. The four teachers that participated in the project were from a middle school with high population of Latino students, which was ranked by the school district as underperforming for the past three years. In our approach of the lesson study cycle, we tried to accommodate the teachers ’ and school’s needs and at the same time to create an activity system where the teachers can improve their knowledge-for-practice, knowledge-of-practice and knowledge-in-practice. Consequently, we changed the structure of each of the three cycles that were part of the project. Our paper presents the reasons that led to these modified versions of the Japanese lesson study cycle, and the change experienced by one of the teachers that participated in all three lesson study cycles of the project