Using Approximations of Practice to Support Calculus Instructors’ Enactment of Equitable Active Learning Teaching Practices

We implemented a semester-long professional development workshop series to help Calculus I and II instructors implement active learning and equitable teaching practices. The workshops actively engaged instructors in approximations of practice (Grossman et al., 2009) in which they learned to enact various teaching practices like designing tasks; eliciting, noticing, and responding to evidence of student thinking; orchestrating class discussions; fostering inclusive social norms; and equitably managing student participation. After they participated in the workshops, we interviewed the instructors about their decisions to implement the teaching practices from the approximations of practice in their teaching. We analyzed the instructors’ resources, orientations, and goals that informed their decisions to enact those practices. We then identified the aspects of the approximations of practice that the instructors viewed as supporting their implementation of those teaching practices.