| This study investigated teachers' conceptions of mathematics and their teaching practices with respect to the use of graphing calculators in their mathematics classrooms. Case studies on three teacher participants were developed using quantitative and qualitative data that consisted of self-assessments on beliefs in mathematics, observations, surveys on professional and personal technology use, and semi-structured interviews. All three teachers viewed mathematics as a dynamic field, emphasized understanding concepts as opposed to mechanical procedures, and preferred the construction and understanding of the concept over the memorization of procedures. All three teachers were willing to use graphing calculators in the mathematics classroom and all three had a similar goal of attempting to use the graphing calculators to eliminate mechanical processing time and enhance their students' ability to construct their own learning.;The evidence from the study suggests that these teacher's practices, with respect to the use of graphing calculators in the mathematics classroom, are influenced by how proficient their students are at using this technology and how accessible the technology is. There were five major findings from the study: (1) if the mechanics of operating a graphing calculator involve at least as much mental effort as the mechanics involved in pencil and paper work, then using the graphing calculator will not free up students so that they can concentrate on constructing their own knowledge and understanding of mathematical concepts or solving more complex problems; (2) when mechanical operating issues are overcome, introducing graphing calculators into the mathematics classroom aids teachers in helping students construct their own mathematical knowledge by allowing all students to begin at a common starting point; (3) to obtain the full benefits of having students learn with the graphing calculators in the mathematics classroom, teachers must require students to use the graphing calculators when they are being evaluated; (4) teachers will determine for themselves where graphing calculators can be most appropriately used in the curriculum; and (5) teachers require strategies that will allow them to successfully deal with managing the day-to-day difficulties involved in using technological instruments such as the graphing calculator in the classroom. Implications for future study include how we can help those teachers inexperienced with the use of technology to incorporate the use of technology in their classrooms, how we need to address the need for consistent teaching practices throughout the intermediate, secondary and post-secondary levels, and how future case studies can be coded to reflect more precisely the language used by teachers to question students in the classroom. Suggestions for educators to consider when using graphing calculators in the mathematics classroom are given at the end of the study. |
