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Student teaching is often a capstone experience in the preparation of mathematics teachers. Thus, it is essential to better understand key aspects of the experience. We conducted a qualitative study of post-lesson conferences led by supervisors (classroom cooperating teachers and a university supervisor) working with mathematics student teachers. Analysis of conference communications revealed differences in the types and content of communications in conferences led by the cooperating teachers and by the university supervisor. Cooperating teachers tended toward evaluative supervision that lacked a focus on the mathematics of the lessons while the university supervisor tended toward educative supervision, guiding student teachers to reflect on and learn from their own classroom experiences including the mathematics of their lessons. Differences are discussed, and suggestions concerning the supervision of student teachers are made along with recommendations for further research.

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Computer-mediated distance education holds potential for providing professional development opportunities for teachers. This study investigated teaching and learning through written asynchronous and synchronous communications in an online graduate education course. Types of student participation during four weeks of discussions in the course, two weeks involving discussion boards (asynchronous) and two involving chat sessions (synchronous), were analyzed to better understand the instruction and learning taking place through each mode. Surveys of students' perceptions of various aspects of the online course including their learning through discussion boards and chat sessions were gathered. Findings suggest instructional practices for online education that draw on the strengths of each written communication mode while diminishing their weaknesses.

Lesson study is a process of professional development highly valued among Japanese teachers (Stigler and Hiebert 1999; Fernandez and Chokshi 2002). In recent years, teachers of mathematics in the United States and other countries have begun to incorporate this process within their own teaching communities; in 2002, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics published a video guide to Japanese lesson study (Curcio 2002). Lesson study is composed of four phases, each of which brings teachers and other experts together in a process of inquiry into teaching. These phases include collaborative planning, lesson observation by colleagues and other experts, analytic reflection, and ongoing revision. Typically, each lesson may go through these phases multiple times. Each time, a different member of the lesson study group teaches the lesson while the other members observe, collecting data for analysis of and reflection on the lesson.

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Have you ever wondered how to bring music into your mathematics lessons? Music can be a rich context for facilitating mathematical connections.