In the mathematics portion of the TIMSS 1999 Video Study, an international team of researchers videotaped and analyzed 638 eighth grade mathematics lessons from seven countries (Australia, the Czech Republic, Hong Kong, Japan, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the United States). The goal of this study was to describe typical—not exemplary—teaching in each of these countries, focusing on teaching practices rather than individual teachers. The study then released a 4-CD set (available from RBS) with four lessons from each country—over 21 hours of lessons—for use in teacher education. The CDs also include extensive support material: information about the lessons, transcripts, textbook pages and worksheets used, and commentaries from the teachers and researchers.
These lessons provide snapshots of regular mathematics classrooms from countries that exhibited higher student achievement in mathematics than the United States in 1995. The videos also reveal the level of mathematics students are expected to learn in various countries and how teachers go about helping them learn. However, it is challenging for educators to make use of this vast amount of information provided.
The purpose of this guide is to make the lessons more useful. It aims to help pre-service and in-service teacher educators, as well as professional developers, engage teachers and help them learn from observation, practice, and reflection. The guide enables users to select relevant lessons and clips from the 28 videos and accompanying resources. While they do not rate lessons according to teaching quality, the materials are designed to assist teachers in building their mathematics knowledge while exploring the pedagogy of teaching mathematics and how the two are intertwined.
For more information, visit the guide.