Are we all in this together?: mathematics teachers’ perspectives on equity in remote instruction during pandemic

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented situation that influenced all aspects of society, including education. Millions of students found themselves adjusting to a new medium of mathematics instruction, not to mention the teachers who had to provide instruction through remote sources. Considering students’ diverse social, economic, and academic background, this study sought to examine teachers’ perspectives on factors that support or hinder how equity is attended to in mathematics during remote instruction and the extent it differed from practices utilized when instruction was provided in a face-to-face setting. We also sought to document teachers’ perspectives on how they attended to equity in mathematics to support students with language barriers. We interviewed nine teachers to explore their perspectives of factors that support or hinder equity in mathematics teaching and learning during remote instruction compared to face-to-face instruction and how they support the diverse needs (inclusive of language barriers) of students. There were salient factors in this study that supported or hindered equitable mathematics instruction, such as teachers’ beliefs, expectations for students, access to resources, students’ socioeconomic status, and language barriers. Hence, it is recommended that policymakers, school administrators, and teachers need to collaborate to systematically plan to ensure that all students have access to quality mathematics.

Mindfulness as Moderator Against Emotional Exhaustion Due to Online Teaching During COVID-19 Pandemic: An Investigation Using Job Demands-Resources Model and Conservation of Resource Theory

“…From diverse perspectives, a plethora of studies have examined the impact of COVID-19 lockdown on home education ( Cahoon et al, 2021 ), social life and mental health of students ( Chaturvedi et al, 2021 ) competences of parents, children, and teachers ( Öçal et al, 2021 ), and student academic performance ( Iglesias-Pradas et al, 2021 ). With face-to-face teaching replaced by remote instruction, new approaches to curriculum design ( Yilmaz et al, 2021 ), OT activity design and implementation ( Wu, 2021 ), and teachers’ technology acceptance ( Hong et al, 2021 ) have been studied.…”

Teachers’ learning from addressing the challenges of online teaching in a time of pandemic: a case in Shanghai

“…This study presented various ways to address the challenges in online teaching as literature indicated (Aldon et al, 2021 ; Cao et al, 2021 ; Chirinda et al, 2021 ; Kalogeropoulos et al, 2021 ; Mailizar et al, 2020 ; Yılmaz et al, 2021 ). Specifically in this study, we found the following: (1) Limited ‘face-to-face’ communication online is still a pressing technological constraint.…”

“…Several studies have identified the difficulties and challenges in online teaching and learning in response to the emergency of the pandemic (Aldon et al, 2021 ; Cao et al, 2021 ; Chirinda et al, 2021 ; Clark-Wilson et al, 2020 ; Engelbrecht et al, 2020 ; Kalogeropoulos et al, 2021 ; Mailizar et al, 2020 ; Yılmaz et al, 2021 ). Teachers encounter challenges in four areas: technology, students, mathematics, and resources.…”

“…These are (1) unfamiliarity with online teaching platform functions which are needed for online synchronous teaching, and lack of access to Internet and computers in developing countries (Aldon et al, 2021 ; Cao et al, 2021 ; Chirinda et al, 2021 ; Clark-Wilson et al, 2020 ; Engelbrecht et al, 2020 ); (2) difficulties in communication with students online (Kalogeropoulos et al, 2021 ; Mailizar et al, 2020 ); (3) constraints in carrying out manipulative activity and grouping activity online (Aldon et al, 2021 ); and (4) lack of time and support for identifying or designing appropriate electronic resources for students’ learning from home (Chirinda et al, 2021 ). Although in some countries, governments provided unified and systematic online support resources such as video lessons, television programs, and other resources for teachers and students to use, it is hard for teachers to adapt them in online synchronous instruction to meet various students’ learning needs (e.g., Yılmaz et al, 2021 ). These studies presented benefits, strategies, and challenges of online mathematics teaching in the pandemic.…”

Distance Lesson Study in Mathematics: A Case Study of an Italian High School

“…In the last 2 years, many scholars have analyzed the pandemic situation from many points of view. Among them, many have studied the conditions of students and teachers from a teaching, social and psychological point of view (e.g., Borba, 2021;Cassibba et al, 2021;Yilmaz et al, 2021). Bakker et al (2021) wondered if the pandemic changed the perspectives on the themes like mathematics education research.…”