The aim of this paper is to investigate and compare lessons given in primary school teacher education in Japan, Finland and Sweden. We analyse one lesson from each country and compare them using a common framework. Chevallard’s anthropological theory of the didactic (ATD) is used to frame this analysis and in particular to model teacher educators' didactic organization of the lessons. The focus is on how the didactic organizations of the teacher educators relate to the mathematical and didactic organizations of primary school. Based on official documents and viewpoints of the teacher educators, we also discuss how the contents and descriptions of the national curricula, and the different traditions of the teaching practices in each country, influence the didactic organizations found in the lessons. 

In this study, we have observed three different teacher educators’ lessons, concerning area determination of polygons in primary school teacher training courses in Japan, Finland and Sweden. The aim of this paper is to investigate the main elements of the lessons and to compare the differences between the countries. We focus on how the teacher educators relate the didactic construction of the lessons for prospective teachers to the school mathematical and didactical organisations by applying Chevallard’s anthropological theory of the didactic (ATD). The analysis shows how the curricula and the different traditions of teaching practice in each country influence the mathematical and didactical construction of the lessons.

This licentiate thesis is concerned with applying the Japanese problem solving oriented (PSO) teaching approach to Swedish mathematics classrooms. The overall aim of my research project is to describe and investigate the viability of PSO as design tool for teaching mathematics. The PSO approach is a variation of a more general Japanese teaching paradigm referred to as “structured problem solving”. These teaching methods aim to stimulate the process of students’ mathematical thinking and have their focus on enhancing the students’ attitudes towards engaging in mathematical activities. The empirical data are collected using interviews, observations and video recordings over a period of nine months, following two Swedish lower secondary school classes. Chevallard’s anthropological framework is used to analyse which mathematical knowledge is exposed in the original Japanese lesson plans and in the lessons observed in the classrooms. In addition, Brousseau’s framework of learning mathematics is applied to analyse the perception of individual students and particular situations in the classroom.

The results show that the PSO based lesson plans induce a complex body of mathematical knowledge, where different areas of mathematics are linked. It is found that the discrepancy between the Japanese and Swedish curriculum cause some limitations for the adaptation of the lesson plans, especially in the area of Geometry. Four distinct aspects of the PSO approach supporting the teaching of mathematics are presented.

This paper presents and analyses “Mondaikaiketsu no jugyou” which translates to “the problem solving oriented – approach”.  It is a set of didactic techniques with the aim of motivating the students’ positive attitude toward engaging in mathematical activities and fostering mathematical thinking. As an analytical tool, The Anthropological Theory of Didactics (ATD) will be applied.