The development of a professional statistics teaching identity
Abstract
Motivated by the increased statistics expectations for students and their teachers because of the widespread adoption of the CCSSM, this study explores exemplary statistics teachers’ professional identities using a theoretical framework informed by Gee (2000) and communities of practice (Lave & Wenger, 1991; Wenger, 1998). Findings indicate the exemplary statistics teachers developed teaching for both mathematics and statistics, though these were not always recognized by administrators, other teachers, and parents. Two major contributing factors to the development of a statistics teaching identity—teachers’ specialized knowledge and teacher isolation—are discussed. This work has implications for teacher preparation and professional development.
