Date of Award

5-2014

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

College/School

College of Science and Mathematics

Department/Program

Mathematical Sciences

Thesis Sponsor/Dissertation Chair/Project Chair

Mika Munakata

Committee Member

Eileen Fernandez

Committee Member

Kathryn Herr

Abstract

This study describes a practitioner action research project in which I co-constructed a high school mathematics elective course with my students. The focus of the course was on developing students’ quantitative literacy. I examined the impact of the coconstruction process on the evolution of the course, analyzed how the course influenced students’ quantitative literacy and attitudes about mathematics, and reflected on some of the lessons I learned about making mathematics more relevant for my students. This study fills a gap in the literature by describing the impact of a quantitative literacy course at the high school level and by documenting the effect of co-construction on an entire course. In order to answer my research questions, I relied on qualitative data gathered from surveys, questionnaires, classroom assessments, transcriptions of classroom discussions, field notes, and my own research journal. The findings of this study highlight some of the complexities involved in the co-construction process, the impact of coconstruction on students’ interest, and some key themes related to teaching for quantitative literacy.

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