HOW UNDERSTANDING MATHEMATICAL DISCOURSES SHAPES PRINCIPAL NOTICING

Principal leadership is a key factor in student achievement, but we are not yet sure how knowledge of content influences leadership. Teacher evaluation systems assume principals understand the pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) for multiple disciplines, a particularly challenging expectation for secondary leaders. This study presents a noticing frame- work of PCK for leadership that describes a progression through four levels, from content-neutral pedagogy to an interconnection between pedagogy and mathematical discourses. Using the framework, the study provides evidence that principals can learn to notice significant mathematical events but may struggle to respond to teachers about those events. The framework can serve as a tool for leaders to learn to notice the role of mathematics in classrooms during their work with teachers.