Understanding the Characteristics of Mathematical Content Knowledge for Teaching Algebra in High Schools and Community Colleges

In this paper we present an exploratory analysis of differences in the performance of two different samples of teachers—high school practicing teachers and community college faculty—on an instrument that assesses mathematical knowledge for teaching algebra 1. To better understand the variance in the performance within and between the two groups of teachers, we examine the relationships between the measured knowledge and teachers’ educational and teaching background. Highlighting the positive effect of algebra-based teaching experience on the knowledge, we discuss the implications regarding the extent to which the instrument captures the construct it seeks to assess.National Science Foundation awards 1561436, 2000602, 2000527, and 0918425.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/171077/1/MKTA_deepblue.pdfDescription of MKTA_deepblue.pdf : Pre-proof version of the accepted manuscriptSEL