The Standards for Preparing Teachers of Mathematics has set forth an ambitious but achievable vision to prepare teachers who can effectively support the mathematics learning of each and every student in grades PK–12 education. Making the changes needed to achieve this vision will be challenging, requiring a significant investment of time and resources. Change, however, does not guarantee improvement, and improvement is imperative to meet the challenges facing mathematics teacher preparation outlined in the introduction to this document. In this final chapter, we offer suggestions to our AMTE members and the constituencies who partner with us for supporting the improvement of the preparation of teachers of mathematics, first reexamining the assumptions underlying improvement, then exploring processes that support improvement, and finally outlining necessary actions for stakeholders involved in preparing teachers of mathematics
Closing Remarks
The Standards for Preparing Teachers of Mathematics has set forth an ambitious but achievable vision for the preparation of teachers of mathematics, grounded in fundamental assumptions that underlie the improvement of mathematics teacher preparation (see Table 9.1). Launching from these assumptions, these standards describe the knowledge, skills, and dispositions needed by well-prepared beginning teachers of mathematics (Chapter 2) and how to create effective mathematics teacher preparation programs to ensure that those successfully completing such programs are indeed well-prepared to meet the diverse needs of the students they will teach (Chapter 3). Elaborations of these standards describe specific guidance on preparing teacher candidates who will be teaching mathematics at different grade levels (Chapters 4 through 7), followed by recommendations for how to effectively assess progress in meeting these standards and elaborations (Chapter 8). Finally, in this chapter (Chapter 9), we make recommendations for enacting the vision.
We hope that these standards will evoke deep discussions among those involved in mathematics teacher preparation. We further hope that they will spur actions among those providing programs that prepare teachers of mathematics toward realizing the vision in their programs. Finally, we hope that these standards will shape the broader discourse around the need for continuous improvement in mathematics teacher preparation, serving as a seminal resource for reconsidering policies and practices that support mathematics teacher preparation.