The best evidence syntheses (BESs) bring together research evidence about ‘what works’ for diverse (all) learners in education. Recent BESs each include a number of cases that describe actual examples of professional practice and then analyse the findings. These cases support educators to grasp the big ideas behind effective practice at the same time as they provide vivid insight into their application.
This case explains how the effective use of three Numeracy Project tools (the number framework, diagnostic interview, and teaching model) enables teachers to design rich mathematical tasks for diverse (all) students. The tools support teachers to explore students’ thinking about mathematics, their own expectations of students, and their beliefs about teaching mathematics.
Recent international studies show that in-school variation in mathematical achievement is greater than the variation between schools. This case describes some of the processes schools can use to build teachers’ mathematical knowledge and pedagogical practices so that they can employ the tools effectively to improve mathematical outcomes for all students.