Seeing algebraic thinking in the classroom: a study of teachers' conceptualizations of algebra

Ideas about how students learn algebra have shifted over the years. Reform curricula have been developed to address these changes. Teachers' conceptualizations of algebra play a large role in how they view and implement reform curricula. This paper explores teachers' conceptualizations of algebra and investigates how they draw on their conceptualizations in the moments of instruction through the use of new methods that incorporate teacher-selected classroom video clips. Data revealed that teachers' verbal descriptions of student algebraic thinking did not always align with moments of instruction they selected as providing evidence of student algebraic thinking.