Abstract
There is a growing consensus that mathematics teachers need
to significantly expand their content and pedagogical content
knowledge in order to make instructional improvements and
provide increased opportunities for student learning. Longterm,
sustainable professional development programs can
play an important role in this regard. Our research team has
spent the past several years developing a program called the
Problem-Solving Cycle (PSC). This professional development
model is grounded in a situative perspective on learning and
draws upon theoretical and empirical evidence regarding the
importance of professional learning communities and the
value of using artifacts of practice to situate teachers’ learning
in their classroom experience. The model takes into account the complexity of classroom teaching, the wide array
of knowledge teachers need to promote the mathematical
thinking of their students, and the long-term commitment
required to develop such knowledge. In this article, we present
the conceptual framework for the PSC, details of its
enactment, and initial findings regarding its impact on
teachers’ knowledge.
