Teachers' Strategies for Teaching Mathematics in Heterogeneous Classes

The book is the result of a study that investigated teaching strategies to promote mathematics learning in heterogeneous classes in the final years of elementary school. It was based on questionnaires and interviews with math teachers who work with adolescents in the Belo Horizonte public school system. By recognizing, through their reports, practices considered to be successful, these were investigated. In general, the teaching strategies analyzed in this research had some of the following characteristics: autonomy of work; intentionality of actions; seeking teacher-student interaction (affectivity); monitoring students for longer periods; concern for students' human and citizen training; positive expectations regarding students' learning potential; understanding of education as a right that must be guaranteed by the teacher, and valuing in-service teacher training. The results indicated that there is a range of possibilities and alternatives capable of promoting mathematical knowledge in situations where there is heterogeneity among the learners.