Adaptive teaching in mathematics: a review of the literature

ABSTRACT

Supporting students’ mathematical proficiency requires teachers to continuously adapt their instruction in response to their students’ instructional needs. To explore what it means to be an adaptive teacher, we conducted a literature review spanning from 1975–2014 of adaptive teaching in mathematics. Using 24 search terms in three databases, we identified 19 articles that met our inclusion criteria. Findings reiterated findings of a previous literature review regarding the importance of: (a) a stimulus, or something to which the teacher must attend; (b) teacher metacognition and reflection, or interpretation and analysis; and (c) teacher action, or response. Additional findings highlighted the importance in mathematics education research to look closely at: (a) how curricula can serve as stimuli aiding adaptive teaching practices; (b) the idea that the teacher reflects directly on the student stimuli, the learning trajectory, or her own actions; and (c) additional teacher responses, including orchestrating classroom discourse, modifying curricular materials, or selecting teaching aids.

KEYWORDS:

• Adaptive teaching
• teacher noticing
• reflective teaching
• diagnostic teaching
• teaching methods

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.