Table Of Content“The editors of this volume are the top practitioners and supporters of Lesson
Study in the US, and possibly the world. This volume shows what teachers can
learn when engaging deeply in Lesson Study and supported by masters.”
– Alan Schoenfeld, Elizabeth and Edward Conner Professor of
Education, University of California, Berkeley
“From teachers themselves, learn the power of Lesson Study for teaching and
learning mathematics. As teacher teams practice essential elements of Lesson
Study, their own knowledge of mathematics grows and they find multiple
strategies that help or hinder individual students. Learn what is necessary for
this remarkable form of professional development to forge exciting learning
communities in schools that bring out the best in children. This book is a testament
to why Lesson Study is worth the effort!”
– Alice J. Gill, Retired Senior Associate Director,
AFT Educational Issues Department
“Lesson Study works at large scales of implementation: it is used in virtually
every elementary school in Japan and widespread across many Asian countries.
It works to build teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge. They learn more
math month after month by studying students’ mathematical thinking shoulder
to shoulder with colleagues. Lesson Study focuses on the mathematics in student
thinking in response to teaching. It is the best way to improve implementation
of your program. This book gives you the wisdom of worldwide leaders and the
experience of American practitioners of lesson study.”
– Phil Daro, Director of Mathematics, Strategic Education Research
Partnership (SERP)
“A novel collection curated from in-depth work by classroom practitioners, guided
by experts in the field of lesson study, this book is a must-read for educators
interested in using lesson study to improve teacher knowledge and learning
process in mathematics. The excellent juxtaposition of research and practice
makes this book an excellent resource to those already practicing lesson study as
well as to those looking for inspiration in starting a learning community among
colleagues.”
– Yeap Ban Har, Pathlight School, Singapore
Educators’ Learning from
Lesson Study
Offering voices from the field – the first of its kind outside of Japan – this guide to
teaching and learning elementary mathematics highlights real case examples from
teachers and educators who share what they have learned through Lesson Study.
The teachers’ reports provide vivid examples of new insights and ideas about
mathematics, about pedagogy and lesson design, about student learning, and about
professional collaboration gained through Lesson Study. Each report includes an
abbreviated plan of the specific research lesson that led to the new insights, which
readers can draw from to replicate the powerful learning in their own community.
The case examples of this book are from Lesson Study in mathematics, elementary
to lower secondary grade levels, focused on what teachers and educators have
learned about improving mathematics teaching and learning; but many ideas from
each report can be applied to other subjects and different grade levels.
This unique book will be an excellent resource for mathematics teachers in
training and practice who seek to improve mathematics teaching and learning in
their own and others’ classrooms, including researchers and school administrators
who lead professional development.
Akihiko Takahashi is Associate Professor of Mathematics Education at
DePaul University. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign and has published over 80 journal articles and book chapters
in English and Japanese. He has given over 50 presentations and keynotes at
conferences and workshops in 18 countries.
Thomas McDougal is Founder & Executive Director of Lesson Study Alliance
in Chicago. He has worked previously as a high school math teacher and as an
elementary (grades K–8) mathematics specialist in the Chicago Public Schools.
In 2016, he co-authored the paper, “Collaborative Lesson Research: Maximizing
the Impact of Lesson Study.”
Shelley Friedkin is Senior Research Associate for the Lesson Study Group at
Mills College. Her research interests include teachers’ learning from practice and
practice-based artifacts, and developing school-wide Lesson Study.
Tad Watanabe is Professor of Mathematics Education and an associate chair of
the Department of Mathematics at Kennesaw State University. His research inter-
ests include teaching and learning of multiplicative concepts and Lesson Study.
WALS-Routledge Lesson Study Series
Series editors: Christine Kim-Eng Lee, Catherine Lewis,
Kiyomi Akita, and Keith Wood
This series aims to provide opportunities for researchers and practitioners in Les-
son Study to share their work beyond the boundaries of their countries to an inter-
national audience. Lesson Study is increasingly popular as a tool for improving
the quality of education and schools around the world. Many countries are adapt-
ing and contextualizing Japanese Lesson Study to their own needs in response
to educational and curriculum reforms cognizant that what matters most is what
happens in classrooms and its impact on teachers and students. As Lesson Study
originates from Japan, there is also a need for English Language readers around
the world to understand more deeply the underlying philosophies, policies and
practices of Japanese Lesson Study in the cultural contexts of their schools and
classrooms. As well as original works in English from leading figures in Lesson
Study, this series will also make available outstanding Lesson Study publications
originally written in Japanese but extended and revised for an English audience.
Stepping up Lesson Study
An Educator’s Guide to Deeper Learning
Edited by Aki Murata and Christine Kim-Eng Lee
Lesson Study in Inclusive Educational Settings
Edited by Sui Lin Goei, Brahm Nowich, and Peter Dudley
Lesson Study-based Teacher Education
The Potential of the Japanese Approach in Global Settings
Edited by Jongsung Kim, Nariakira Yoshida, Shotaro Iwata, and
Hiromi Kawaguchi
Reforming Lesson Study in Japan
Theories of Action for Schools as Learning Communities
Yuta Suzuki
Educators’ Learning from Lesson Study
Mathematics for Ages 5–13
Edited by Akihiko Takahashi, Thomas McDougal, Shelley Friedkin, and
Tad Watanabe
Educators’ Learning from
Lesson Study
Mathematics for Ages 5–13
Edited by Akihiko Takahashi,
Thomas McDougal, Shelley Friedkin, and
Tad Watanabe
Cover image: © Getty Images
First published 2022
by Routledge
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa
business
© 2022 selection and editorial matter, Akihiko Takahashi, Thomas
McDougal, Shelley Friedkin, and Tad Watanabe; individual chapters, the
contributors
The right of Akihiko Takahashi, Thomas McDougal, Shelley Friedkin,
and Tad Watanabe to be identified as the authors of the editorial material,
and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in
accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents
Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in
any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing
from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or
registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation
without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Takahashi, Akihiko, 1955- editor. | McDougal, Thomas, 1962- editor. |
Friedkin, Shelley, 1965- editor. | Watanabe, Tad, 1959- editor.
Title: Educators’ learning from lesson study : mathematics for ages 5-13 /
edited by Akihiko Takahashi, Thomas McDougal, Shelley Friedkin,
Tad Watanabe.
Description: Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routledge, 2022. |
Series: WALS-Routledge lesson study series | Includes bibliographical
references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2021057871 (print) | LCCN 2021057872 (ebook) |
ISBN 9781032138176 (hardback) | ISBN 9781032138169 (paperback) |
ISBN 9781003230915 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Mathematics—Study and teaching (Elementary) |
Mathematics teachers—In-service training.
Classification: LCC QA135.6 .E33 2022 (print) | LCC QA135.6 (ebook) |
DDC 372.7/044—dc23/eng20220314
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021057871
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021057872
ISBN: 978-1-032-13817-6 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-032-13816-9 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-23091-5 (ebk)
DOI: 10.4324/9781003230915
Typeset in Times New Roman
by Apex CoVantage, LLC
For all who work so hard through Lesson Study to benefit
their students
Contents
List of figures xii
List of tables xiv
Foreword xv
Preface xviii
Acknowledgements xx
List of contributors xxii
I How we expect Lesson Study to contribute to the quality of
teaching and learning 1
Teacher as life-long learner 3
SHELLEY FRIEDKIN
Learning from Lesson Study as part of the planning team 13
THOMAS MCDOUGAL
What can we learn from observing a research lesson? 19
TAD WATANABE
II What we learned about the contents we teach 27
“Doing the math”: word problems in the primary grades –
solve “take-from with change unknown” story problems
with grade 1 (6- and 7-year-old) students 29
BRIGID BROWN
To add or subtract, that is the question: a compare-type
problem with the smaller quantity unknown, grade 2
(7- and 8-year-old) students 37
JANA MORSE
Expanding the meaning of multiplication: understanding
multiplication of a whole number by a decimal, grade 5
(10- and 11-year-old) students 51
JOSHUA LERNER
