Abstract

This study was developed to identify the specific instructional and professional differences among the most effective, moderately effective, and least effective Grade 4 and Grade 5 teachers of mathematics in one Florida school district. The purpose of this study was to determine the professional preparation, beliefs about student learning, professional practices, (e.g., professional development, planning, reflection, and collaboration with colleagues), and instructional differences among the effectiveness groups of Grade 4 and Grade 5 teachers of mathematics. Mathematics teachers have the responsibility to engage and encourage students to be mathematical thinkers and problem solvers that value mathematics and strive for the best standards (Hattie, 2009). This study applied a mixed-methods approach to gather data from teachers of Grade 4 and Grade 5 mathematics in one Florida school district by utilizing teacher effectiveness scores derived from value-added model and the Elementary Mathematics Teacher Survey© to gather information on teacher: (a) professional preparation, (b) beliefs about student learning, (c) professional practices, and (d) confidence in instructional strategies. The findings of this study expanded the work of previous researchers in improving the effectiveness of elementary mathematics teachers. While no statistically significant results were revealed in the sample population of this study, all the most effective participants had mathematics education in their professional preparation. In addition, all the most effective participants believed students could improve their mathematical learning and school district professional learning contributed to their effectiveness. Furthermore, at least weekly, all most effective participants: (a) modeled accurate academic language, (b) maintained classroom routines, (c) provided feedback, and (d) differentiated instruction. Qualitative findings were summarized from open-ended responses and the themes in the most effectiveness group included: (a) building relationships, (b) differentiating instruction, and (c) providing feedback. The findings of this study assisted school-level and district-level leaders in improving the effectiveness of elementary mathematics teachers.

Notes

If this is your thesis or dissertation, and want to learn how to access it or for more information about readership statistics, contact us at STARS@ucf.edu

Graduation Date

2020

Semester

Summer

Advisor

Ceballos, Marjorie

Degree

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)

College

College of Community Innovation and Education

Department

Educational Leadership and Higher Education

Degree Program

Educational Leadership; Executive Track

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

CFE0008194; DP0023548

URL

https://purls.library.ucf.edu/go/DP0023548

Language

English

Release Date

August 2025

Length of Campus-only Access

5 years

Access Status

Doctoral Dissertation (Campus-only Access)

Download

Restricted to the UCF community until August 2025; it will then be open access.

Share

COinS