Shifting up: A look at Advanced Mathematics Classes in Tracked Schools

This study used qualitative methods to investigate the teaching of high school mathematics teachers teaching in tracked schools. A comparison between two tracked classes, one honors class and one regular class, was done for each of two participants. The study addressed the following research questions: (1) How do the teachers construct the two tracked groups of students as different? (2) How do teachers adjust their teaching practice for two different tracked classrooms? The findings suggested that in between-participant comparisons, teachers made similar associations between poor behavior and lack of motivation with the regular-track students. Differences in pedagogical approaches in the two classes were directly related to these associations.