ROUNDING UP: SEASON 4 | EPISODE 23

For quite a few adults, fractions were a stumbling block in their education, causing them to lose their footing and begin to doubt their ability to make sense of math. But this doesn't have to be the case for our students!

In this rerelease of an episode from Season 2, we're talking with Susan Empson, PhD, about big ideas in fractions and how we can make them more meaningful for our students.

BIOGRAPHY

Susan B. Empson is an emerita professor in the department of Learning, Teaching, and Curriculum at the University of Missouri. She and Vicki Jacobs are currently collaborating on a National Science Foundation research grant to study elementary teachers' learning and development centered on teaching in ways that are responsive to children's mathematical thinking in the domain of rational numbers. Her research on children's thinking about fractions is the topic of her 2011 book, Extending Children's Mathematics: Fractions and Decimals (with co-author Linda Levi), and she has published widely in refereed journals, including Cognition and Instruction, Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, Educational Studies in Mathematics, Teaching Children Mathematics, and Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education. She has been a researcher of Cognitively Guided Instruction since 1989 and is a co-author of Children's Mathematics: Cognitively Guided Instruction (1st and 2nd editions).

RESOURCES

Extending Children's Mathematics: Fractions and Decimals book by Susan B. Empson and Linda Levi

Mathematics Teacher: Learning and Teaching PK-12 journal articles authored and co-authored by Susan Empson

TRANSCRIPT

Click here for a full episode transcript.

ROUNDING UP: SEASON 4 | EPISODE 22

If you are an educator, you've likely heard people say things like "I'm not a math person." While this may make you cringe, if you dig a bit deeper, many people can identify specific experiences that convinced them that this was true. In fact, some of you might secretly wonder if you are a math person as well.

In this rerelease of an episode from Season 3, we're talking with Kasi Allen, PhD, about math trauma: what it is and how educators can take steps to address it.

BIOGRAPHY

Kasi Allen serves as the vice president of learning and impact at The Ford Family Foundation. She holds a PhD degree in educational policy and a bachelor's degree in mathematics and its history, both from Stanford University.

RESOURCES

"Jo Boaler Wants Everyone to Love Math" article in Stanford Magazine

R-RIGHTS

Learning to Love Math by Judy Willis, MD

TRANSCRIPT

Click here for a full episode transcript.

ROUNDING UP: SEASON 4 | EPISODE 21

If you ask an educator to share some of the most important ideas in elementary mathematics, most would include place value on that list. But what does it mean to understand place value, really? And what types of language, practices, and tools support students as they build understanding?

In this rerelease of an episode from Season 2, we discuss these questions and more with Dr. Eric Sisofo from the University of Delaware.

BIOGRAPHY

Dr. Eric Sisofo is an assistant professor specializing in mathematics education in the School of Education at the University of Delaware. He earned his EdD in educational leadership, curriculum, and instruction; his MEd in curriculum and instruction with a concentration in mathematics education; and his BS in mathematical sciences from the University of Delaware. With a focus on mathematics education, Dr. Sisofo's education leadership portfolio, the capstone project for his doctoral degree, investigated the effects of lesson study on teacher candidates' use of student thinking when planning and reflecting on their teaching.

RESOURCE

National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

TRANSCRIPT

Click here for a full episode transcript.