Mathematics teaching cases as a catalyst for informed strategic inquiry

This article is grounded in the work of the Mathematics Case Methods Project that began as a pilot study in 1987. The professional development process designed by this project uses teacher-authored cases (narratives about actual classroom experiences) as a stimulus for discussing mathematical, pedagogical and philosophical concepts and issues. The purpose of this article is to illustrate how specific aspects of the cases and case discussion process contribute to a climate that is conducive for motivating increasingly informed and strategic inquiry. The discussion focuses on four pivotal areas: (1) development of one's own understanding of mathematics; (2) use of the student perspective as a source of feedback; (3) a recast of the familiar as strange and the simple as complex; and (4) critical examination of alternative views and ideas. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. AU rights reserved.