Theory of didactical situations as a tool to understand and develop mathematics teaching practices

Abstract

This article aims to discuss how the theory of didactical situations in mathematics (TDS1 ) can be used to answer research questions concerning regular teaching practices, production of resources for regular teaching, and teacher development. In the first part we focus on TDS and the way it may be a tool for the researcher to understand teaching practices and the way it may contribute to develop teaching practices, helping teachers identify questions useful for their practice. In the second part, we present analyses using TDS in two contexts in which researchers worked with teachers, making explicit or not the concepts they used. The third part approaches, from these two contexts, the way TDS may help the collaboration between researchers and teachers (or teacher educators), in research on teacher development, in particular in the case of producing resources helping teachers to prepare their class. The comparison of the two contexts informs on the specific contribution of TDS in understanding and developing mathematics teaching practices.