Orchestrating both student authority and accountability to the discipline when guiding students presenting a proof

Abstract

Teachers often find it hard to balance between justice to the students’ input and leading the class towards the decided goal. We focus on how the teacher orchestrates the balance between whole class student authority and accountability to the discipline. In the case a student presents the result from group work but at some point needs help. The teacher de-personalises the discussion and directs the class’ attention to the subject and not to individual students. Thereby, the class is treated as a community with a shared authority. By the end, collective learning has taken place.