Carr, MalcolmBiddulph, FredKirkwood, ValdaBegg, Andy2026-11-092026-11-091994https://hdl.handle.net/10289/18756Mathematics teachers are expected to make changes in what they teach, how they teach, how they assess and how they view the learner. These expectations are impinging on them at the same time as other changes in education and in society. In response to this, teachers, school administrators, teacher educators, curriculum developers and policy makers have all asked for more professional development. The aim of this study was to find out more about development, what was needed, and how it might be organized to make it effective. The study was undertaken in 1989-1994 which was a time of considerable change for educational administration with delivery systems for teacher development undergoing change and the mathematics curriculum being rewritten. The research initially addressed the questions: 1 What are the professional development needs of high school mathematics teachers? 2 How might these needs best be met? These led to three further questions: 3 What model(s) for development would be appropriate? 4 What influences affect school-based professional development? 5 Can a teachers guide, incorporating the findings from question 2 help schools with the professional development of mathematics teachers? The study was based on the assumption that professional development is a form of learning rather than change imposed from outside the learner. It therefore can be viewed as a constructivist process and as part of the ongoing growth of the teacher. The study involved a review of the literature and policy documents, and research in 14 schools with 14 heads of department, 30 other mathematics teachers, 10 school administrators (principals and curriculum coordinators), and 15 mathematics educators. The main data collection was by interviews with the teachers, heads of department and school administrators. The data from mathematics educators was obtained through a questionnaire and some additional data was obtained through response sheets which were included in a teachers guide on professional development which was distributed. The data collected from the teachers, mathematics educators, and policy documents provided overlapping perspectives on the focus for development activities (school, subject, and teacher needs), the types of development activities (in-school, between schools, and individually initiated), and the influencing factors (time, resources feelings, and support). The data reflected a conservative view of ‘more of the same’ rather than a consideration of alternative strategies for effecting change. The data from the heads of department in the later part of the research showed what development and planning were occurring. After a teachers guide and the new mathematics curriculum had been distributed to schools, the heads of department were interviewed again to see what was happening and to find whether the teachers guide had been of assistance. Six of the schools were doing in-school work by focusing their department meetings on professional matters but only two of these held regular and frequent (weekly) meetings. The other schools relied largely on external providers for development activities. Overall, in spite of professional development being a component of school charters, very little initiation of development activities originated from twelve of the fourteen schools. The provision of development activities to help heads of departments gain development leadership skills emerged as the most pressing need. The teachers guide seemed to have virtually no immediate effect - this was not surprising because the provision of new ideas had been previously identified as just one of a number of components that need to be present for effective professional development. The thesis argues that professional development needs to be ongoing and have a growth focus which builds on strengths and continually seeks improvement rather than a stop-start model that focuses on imposed change or making up for deficits. The control and responsibility for such development of high school mathematics needs to be with the teachers, the heads of department need to provide the leadership, and the location of the main components for development should be in the school. The more specific conclusions were that schools need to plan for this development and upgrade the skills of their heads of department so that the leadership will be provided.enAll items in Research Commons are provided for private study and research purposes and are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated.Thesis