Japanese lesson study : a numeracy coach's view

This paper reports findings based on interview data from a professional teacher educator who was a Numeracy Coach for a group of schools that participated in a research project, Implementing structured problem-solving mathematics lessons through Lesson Study. The Numeracy Coach was a highly-skilled professional teacher educator, whose position was such that she was both a support person to the teachers and a participant in the project. Her insights into the processes and effects of Japanese Lesson Study, on teachers, as well as herself, are extremely enlightening, and form the data for this paper. While the evidence is from a single source, the evidence is consistent with other projects into the effectiveness of the Japanese model of Lesson Study. Aspects of the project with implications for teacher professional development are detailed.