Shirley Tan

Purpose: This reflective self-study examines how multi-dimensional interactions within an interdisciplinary lesson study on “Time” contributed to my professional growth as a novice mathematics teacher. It focuses on the interaction patterns that supported changes in my instructional beliefs, design practices, and professional understanding. Design/methodology/approach: Drawing on a reflective narrative self-study embedded in iterative lesson study (LS) cycles, I documented and analyzed my experiences in a project initiated during my master's program. Data sources included iterative versions of lesson plans, classroom video recordings, reflective journals, post-lesson discussion transcripts, and student work samples. The analysis combined thematic narrative analysis and inductive coding to identify and compare recurrent “trigger–response” interaction patterns across different kinds of interactions. Cross-material triangulation was used to enhance the credibility of the findings. Findings: Across two LS cycles, five recurring patterns of interaction were identified: supervisory guidance, engagement with curricular texts, cross-disciplinary collaboration in co-constructing integrated lesson designs, responsive exchanges with students, and systematic self-reflection. These patterns appeared in my design, enactment, and assessment decisions. Together, they marked a shift in my professional role – from implementing isolated subject-based lessons to designing interconnected learning experiences – and repositioned my instructional stance from delivering content to facilitating disciplinary understanding through interdisciplinary inquiry. Originality/value: This study offers a first-person, longitudinal account of professional growth in a Chinese elementary mathematics context. It shows how intentionally structured, multi-dimensional interactions within lesson study can accelerate teachers' development, particularly under the current policy demands for interdisciplinary thematic learning.

Purpose: This editorial introduces the special issue on koshi (講師) in communities of lesson studies and explores how individuals came to assume this role (became), how they experience it in practice (being) and how they continue to develop it throughout diversified educational and cultural settings (becoming). Design/methodology/approach: The editorial combines narrative reflection with a literature review. Drawing on the editors’ experiences as koshi, relevant scholarship and the articles included in this special issue, it examines the role of koshi through the interconnected ideas of “became, being and becoming”. Findings: The editorial argues that koshi should not be understood merely as outside experts or knowledgeable others who advise teachers. Instead, the studies in this special issue portray koshi as professionals who learn through ongoing participation and dialogue, and reflect within communities of lesson studies. “Became” depicts the different, often informal pathways people take to enter the role. “Being” focuses on the relational and context-dependent dimensions of supporting teacher learning, particularly the tensions between expertise and collaboration, while emphasising continued professional reflection. “Becoming” points to the ongoing processes of self-questioning and identity reconstruction through which koshi evolve over time. Across the articles, koshi work appears as deeply relational, culturally situated, shaped through everyday practice and continuously evolving through time. Originality/value: This editorial contributes to lesson study scholarship by stressing koshi themselves as learners and developing professionals. By bringing together the editors’ narrative reflections with international perspectives of the authors’ lived experiences, it offers a more humanistic and practice-based understanding of koshi as professionals who continually learn through lessons and learning studies.

This article analyzes Malaysian and Japanese educators’ reactions to a mathematics lesson observed by a subset of researchers. The main aims are to reveal the cultural scripts about mathematical learning that are held by, but often invisible to, members of a culture; and to address educators’ conceptions of teaching mathematics across cultures. This study’s emphasis is placed largely on understanding the logic behind the teaching scripts and the underlying epistemology of teacher pedagogical decisions. A qualitative analytical approach identifies the idea that focus on a single problem during a whole lesson enables opportunities for deeper learning (Japanese participants) or may be boring for students (Malaysian educators), and explores the value of, or problems associated with, extrinsic rewards. This research stands to make an important contribution, both through its novel method, and in its specific ideas about desirable qualities of mathematics lessons and how these might differ from the viewpoint of individual cultures.

Guest editorial: Emerging voices in lesson studies - Author: Shirley Tan, Tijmen Schipper, Stéphane Clivaz, Sui Lin Goei

Bansho (Japanese board writing) is becoming an area of interest among researchers and educators as it could serve as an asset to make a searching inquiry into teaching. This study aims to identify the variations of bansho styles in Japanese schools and draws its data from 10 lessons from a primary school in Japan. All lesson observations were recorded, photographed, and then analyzed. Results of data analysis suggest that there is a variation of bansho styles, which indicates the kind of teaching happening in the classroom, and it relates to the teacher’s beliefs and the type of knowledge valued in the lesson.

Purpose: This paper aims to provide an overview of the origins of bansho, how it has developed to be an indispensable practice in Japan and its influence on countries outside Japan. The integration of bansho into lesson study (LS) will also be presented.Design/methodology/approach: This paper draws on the vast literature on bansho from both in and outside Japan to illustrate the points mentioned above.Findings: Recapitulation on the history of chalkboard and bansho in different eras in Japan illustrated its endurance towards the test of time, geographical space and functions. While bansho remains a constant presence in LS research, there has not been any work that outlines how bansho is integrated into the LS cycle. Thus, a guideline on how bansho can be incorporated in the LS cycle is provided.Originality/value: A comprehensive overview of bansho allows educators and researchers outside Japan to move beyond the know-how and know-what of bansho; it would serve as an invaluable source to understand the core concepts underlying this classroom practice, thus avoiding the mere adaptation of bansho superficial aspects. This study also provides precise instruction on how bansho can be integrated into each step of the LS cycle, which will guide teachers and researchers in the future implementation of LS.

Introduction: Competency assessment and quality assurance are significant aspects of point‐of‐care ultrasound (POCUS) training for residents and medical students. However, due to the COVID‐19 pandemic, alterations in programs have caused a need to develop new models of online assessments for students. While novel alterations in the curriculum have been made, clear learning outcomes and strategies must still teach the best practices. At the California University of Science and Medicine, School of Medicine (CUSM‐SOM), we aim to adapt training and assessment tools that include SonoSim LiveScan experiences. Sonosim, Inc. has developed a tool that students can use remotely to mimic the clinical applications traditionally done in person. This would allow students to familiarize themselves with normal and pathologic scans remotely and hone their diagnostic abilities without requiring in‐person faculty‐led sessions. There have already been multiple medical schools that have added SonoSim to supplement their curriculum and assess students’ competencies. This study aims to develop an online system of reliable competency‐based assessments for medical students in the teaching of POCUS. Methods: After completing each ultrasound module on SonoSim LiveScan alongside the schools’ corresponding system‐based courses, students will be assessed for achievement of competencies and learning outcomes. Students will take an online quiz and submit sonographic images that they obtained on their own time using provided standardized patients. The students will submit the images taken according to the guidelines mapped by the courses’ learning outcomes. Submissions will be through a secured online system. Quizzes will be graded with a predetermined grading system. Using a standardized rubric, three faculty members/instructors will assess scans for competency and quality. Results: Assessment will be completed in two steps. The first step will include an assessment of medical knowledge and concepts via an online quiz. The quiz will have still images and short video clips from SonoSim LiveScan to gauge the mastery of knowledge. The second step of the assessment will include a review of the ultrasound images obtained by the student. They will complete this part of the assessment on their own, asynchronously, and within a defined period of time. Then, three faculty members will score the images independently. To maintain the quality of the assessment, all instructors must agree that the required competencies have been achieved. All major discrepancies between the instructors regarding the results and assessment will be addressed according to the predetermined guidelines. Conclusion: This competency‐based assessment and training identifies students’ areas of weakness and makes review and remediation easy and straightforward. Clear objectives, teaching modalities, and assessments set the foundation for a successful ultrasound program. Competency‐based assessment as outlined above could be the best possible method to ensure students are involved and learning accurately during primarily remote learning times. By outlining a program that is easily implementable and accessible, ultrasound education will be made more available and widespread to medical students who would otherwise not be exposed.