7:57 a.m., Nov. 20, 2009----The Mathematics and Science Education Resource Center (MSERC) at the University of Delaware, under the direction of Jon Manon, has received four grants, totaling more than $875,000, from the Delaware Mathematics and Science Partnership (MSP) for 2009-10 that will continue to fund programs that the center has provided to mathematics teachers across the state of Delaware.

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“These extensions prove that our programs have succeeded so far, and that the work has been effective. This represents a continuity of work around problematic areas in the field of mathematics education and professional development,” Manon said. “By empowering teachers to understand math more deeply and how to teach it more effectively, we can raise expectations for all learners, as well as make mathematics interesting, powerful and engaging for all.”

The Converging Curriculum program, led by Valerie Maxwell, a mathematics specialist at MSERC, grew out of a need to reach at-risk students. The goal of the project is to help teachers of special education students in grades five to nine gain aspects of content knowledge in order to deliver their message to all students. The program provides well-thought-out intervention strategies for at-risk students using visual models to enrich these students' conceptual understanding.

The Delaware Mathematics Coalition (DMC), led by executive director Jamila Riser, is a coalition of all 19 Delaware school districts and six charter schools. Two of the many projects that the DMC sponsors are being supported through MSP grants. The Middle School Professional Development project coaches more than 170 teachers on a bimonthly basis to utilize middle school materials and teaching techniques. The Powerful Pedagogical Practices program, which has 85 teachers and 30 school administrators attend, focuses on the understanding that math can be taught in high schools through problem-based learning.

The Elementary Math Teaching Leadership Project, led by Maxwell, focuses on training elementary school mathematics teachers in six school districts to become leaders who can help their fellow teachers advance their teaching techniques.

The Phase III: Making Practice Public project, led by Janice McCarthy, a mathematics specialist at MSERC, is building upon a prior five-year grant that currently involves six teams of teachers who are developing video-based professional development modules to promote success in middle school and high school mathematics for at-risk learners. The project gives teachers an inside look at the classrooms of their colleagues, as the videos are taken during live teaching lessons.

“Research has shown that professional development for educators works best when it is sustained within their own practices and when it is closely related to what is going on in the classroom,” McCarthy said.

With funding for individual school districts to provide professional training decreasing, Maxwell said it is important for programs like MSERC to receive all the funding they can get to fill the gap and enable teachers to be more successful.

“Professional development used to sometimes seem like a chore,” Maxwell said. “Now, teachers are active participants who want to be there and want to be trained and improve.”

Article by Jon Bleiweis