-- The COACTIV Model of Teachers’ Professional Competence -- Teacher Education in Germany -- The Development of Teachers’ Professional Competence -- The COACTIV Research Program: Methodological Framework -- The Model of Instructional Quality in COACTIV: A Multicriteria Analysis -- Task Analysis in COACTIV: Examining the Potential for Cognitive Activation in German Mathematics Classrooms -- Mathematics Teachers’ Domain-Specific Professional Knowledge: Conceptualization and Test Construction in COACTIV -- The Effect of Content Knowledge and Pedagogical Content Knowledge on Instructional Quality and Student Achievement -- Teachers’ General Pedagogical/Psychological Knowledge -- The Diagnostic Skills of Mathematics Teachers -- Mathematics Teachers’ Beliefs -- Motivation as an Aspect of Professional Competence: Research Findings on Teacher Enthusiasm -- General Occupational Motivation and Self-Regulation -- Individual Characteristics of Prospective Teachers -- Learning at University -- Professional Development Across the Teaching Career -- The COACTIV Research Program On Teachers’ Professional Competence: Summary and Discussion -- Publications from the COACTIV Research Program (April 2012).

Cognitive Activation in the Mathematics Classroom and  Professional Competence of Teachers presents the findings of the Professional Competence of Teachers, Cognitively Activating Instruction, and Development of Students´ Mathematical Literacy project (COACTIV). COACTIV applies a broad, innovative conceptualization of teacher competence to examine how mathematics teachers’ knowledge, beliefs, motivational orientations, and self-regulation skills influence their instructional practice and teaching outcomes. Moreover, it gauges the effects of these teacher characteristics on student learning, as indexed by the progress of students in each class.   For this book, COACTIV study data relating to  various aspects of teacher competence and classroom instruction from the perspective of both the teachers themselves and their students was collected and analyzed. Questions addressed and discussed include: What are the characteristics of successful teaching? What distinguishes teachers who succeed in their profession? How can the quality of instruction be improved? Written for researchers from a broad range of areas, such as educational psychology, general education, and mathematics education, this book effectively demonstrates how teacher competence relates directly to measurable student learning gains.