As students collaborate in small groups, the teacher circulates from group to group providing guidance and support, clarifying or asking questions, giving hints, providing encouragement, and drawing group members into the discussion to help groups work more cooperatively. The unit materials and related questions posed by students drive the learning. Teacher is facilitator. This discussion leads to a class summary of important ideas or to further exploration of a topic if competing perspectives remain. Varying approaches and differing conclusions that can be justified should be encouraged.
Teacher is moderator.
Finally, students are given a task related to lesson objectives to complete on their own . The teacher circulates in the room assessing levels of student understanding. Teacher is intellectual coach. In addition to the classroom investigations, Contemporary Mathematics in Context provides sets of MORE tasks, which are designed to engage students in M odeling with O rganizing R eflecting on, and E xtending their mathematical understanding. These tasks, which are central to the learning goals of each lesson, are intended primarily for individual work outside of class.