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PurposeThis paper reports on experiences of university-level mathematics teacher educators (MTEs) from participating in lesson study to improving mathematics teacher preparation. The authors investigate the questions: “What did MTEs report as benefits of participating in cross-departmental lesson study?” and “What considerations did MTEs report for stakeholders interested in lesson study?”Design/methodology/approachThis study employed qualitative methodologies on one cycle of lesson study where the authors served as lesson study participants. Debrief and focus group interview data were analyzed for emergent codes on benefits, supports and challenges from a university-level lesson study.FindingsEngaging in university-level lesson study provided MTEs firsthand professional development, created community, enabled attention to detail, improved knowledge of issues related to teaching mathematics, improved curricular materials and extended beyond one lesson. Institutional support, a natural evolution of the process, alignment of goals among members and support within the group supported their university-level lesson study. Challenges of time and funding, imposition, misalignment of goals and building trust are discussed.Originality/valueThe paper contributes insights about benefits for MTEs who use lesson study to examine their own teaching practice for mathematics teacher preparation. The importance of supports and constraints is highlighted.

This paper reports on a semester-long co-teaching investigation in which three mathematics teacher educators in the USA themselves enacted a co-plan/co-teach credentialing model in the context of a mathematics content course for future elementary teachers. The mathematics teacher educators sought to examine the co-planning practices for improving the team teaching co-teaching strategy. Data were collected from the mathematics teacher educators over fifteen weeks, including twice-weekly journal entries and classroom observation protocols. Utilizing a first-person research study design, the mathematics teacher educators found that a coplanning strategy could be used to maximize resources and improve lesson cohesion during team taught lessons. In particular, the mathematics teacher educators used co-planning meetings to divide lesson responsibilities by learning goal or by task. In this novel approach to mathematics teacher educator training, we describe the coplanning strategy along with its expansion, implementation, benefits, and limitations, and argue for its use in coteachers' co-planning repertoire.