Empirical findings on teaching and learning based upon an in-service teacher development program for the fostering of fact mastery

摘要: An in-service teacher development program currently underway in Carinthia, Austria, is aiming at offering participants well-founded suggestions on how to promote non-counting strategies for solving basic addition and subtraction problems. The concept of the program comprises five theoretical input sessions followed by weekly counseling visits by an expert teacher throughout the following year. We report on eight attendees, four of whom did receive the counseling. Drawing upon semi-structured interviews, a content-analytical evaluation of teaching materials, and visits to their classes, we try to establish whether and to what extent the teachers did implement targeted measures to overcome calculating by counting. The strategies their pupils (N = 117) used to solve basic tasks by the end of first grade are documented based upon qualitative interviews. Our study clearly indicates that while the elaboration of …