Preparing for Our First Math Team Meeting

I am very happy to announce that the JBA Math Team will be having their first meeting on Wednesday, November 2nd.  Unfortunately it doesn't look like everyone one will be able to attend, but my fellow colleagues have shown a real interest in meeting an a regular basis to make the Math Department as coherent as possible.

So how did this all happen?

Well, around the middle of October I sent out an email to the 6th and 7th grade math teachers, our ICT teacher, both assistant principals, and the principal, asking if they would be willing to meet as a department.  The overall response I got (not from everyone) was positive, so I followed up asking everyone what days specifically worked best.  We realized that there was no real time during the day that we were all free to meet, so we decided that it would have to be after school.  Since we would be meeting after school, I emailed the principal and asked if we could get paid for any collaboration that we did, and she agreed.

Deciding on a date that worked for everyone wasn't easy, even with a department as small as ours, between after school clubs, grad school, and other commitments.  Eventually we decided on Wednesday, November 2nd, and everyone except the 7th grade math teacher would be able to attend.  Since it was our first meeting, we felt that we could fill her in.

In order to prepare for our meeting this week, I set up a Google Collection as a place to keep our team meeting agendas and any other resources we might out together.  I chose Google Collection because this year the Faculty and scholars all have their own Google email addresses, and I felt that this would be a good place to centralize our materials.  In our collection, I set up a Google Document with a tentative agenda, and encouraged, via email, the math team to add to it.  I emphasized that I wanted our meetings to be as useful for us as possible.   So far, one teacher as added to it.

What am I learning about collaboration?
I am excited to be setting up our math team meetings.  I feel like I am being productive, and it feels good to have the support of my colleagues.  As of right now, I don't plan on doing any math in our first meeting, but I do plan to do some math with my colleagues in future meetings.  I am happy to see this finally happening!  My assistant principal even commented that she is looking forward to seeing someone else besides her run the meeting, and that she happy she can focus on math once again (she was teaching Social Studies in the beginning of the year briefly).

Literature Review

Fernandes, A, Keohler, J, & Reiter, H. (2011). Mathematics teachers circle around problem solving.  Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School. 17(2), 109-115.

The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Standards  “recommend that students should have frequent opportunities to formulate, grapple with, and solve complex problems that require a significant amount of effort and should be encouraged to reflect on their thinking” (NCTM, 2000, p. 52)  My action research last year focused on my own instruction of problem solving.  Some of the challenges that I encountered came from my limited experience teaching problem solving in a constructivist way.  Fernandez, Keohler, & Reiter (2011) state that “making problem solving a central part of teaching may be challenging to teachers who have limited experiences in learning and teaching mathematics in this way” (p. 109).  From my experiences the last two summers at Bank Street, I believe that by collaborating with other math teachers at my school, I can bring richer problem solving experiences into my own classroom. 

In their article, they examine the key features of Math Teachers’ Circles, which “were developed with the aim of establishing a “culture of problem solving” among middle school mathematics teachers” (p. 109).  The authors use a vignette of a Math Teachers’ Circle as they attempt to work on the Frogs and Toad problem, to describe how teachers coming together to do math can be an enriching and inspiring experience.  “By making problem solving the central focus of the Circles, the teachers are provided with opportunities to engage in nonroutine problems and get firsthand experience of the challenge and thrill of finding a solution (Fernandez, Keohler, & Reiter, 2011, p 114).   I hope to use their article as a framework for my own collaboration with math teachers at JBA. 

Hiebert, J., et al. (1997). Making sense: Teaching and learning mathematics with understanding.  New Hampshire: Heinmann.

In this book, Hiebert emphasizes the importance of teaching and learning mathematics with understanding.  He uses one definition of understanding that “says that we understand something if we see how it is related or connected to other things we know” (Brownell 1935; Heibert and Carpenter 1992).  Heibert (1997) states that “To help think about how people make connections in mathematics and how they make connections that are useful, it is helpful to consider two processes that play an important role in the making of connections: reflection and communication” (p. 5).  I believe that getting together with math colleagues and doing math problems together will give teachers an opportunity to reflect and communicate on the math.   

Little, J. W. (1993). Teachers’ professional development in a climate of education reform, Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis.  15, 129 – 151.

“Collaboration is increasingly identified as a key aspect in teachers’ professional growth.  Education reformers have recommended placing more attention on collegial relations of teachers for the purpose of professional growth” (Little, 1992, as cited in Syn-Jong, 2006, p. 178).  This article describes how teacher collaboration is an essential part of their professional development practice and school reform.  What I hope to learn from this experience of getting together with math colleagues and doing math problems together, I am curious about what I will learn about collaborative professional development. 

National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM). 2000.  Principles and Standards for School Mathematics.  Reston, VA: NCTM

According to the Professional Standards for Teaching Mathematics (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 1991), an essential factor in teachers’ professional development is the degree to which they “reflect on learning and teaching individually and with colleagues” (p. 168).  Unfortunately JBA does not have weekly or even monthly departmental math team meeting, therefore there was very limited collaboration between the teachers.  According to Professional Standards for Teaching Mathematics (NCTM 1991, p. 128), teachers need opportunities to experience mathematics instruction that will “enable all learners to experience mathematics as a dynamic engagement in solving problems.  These experiences should be designed deliberately to help teachers rethink their conceptions of what mathematics is, what a mathematics class is like, and how mathematics is learned.”  I believe that in order to be a stronger department, we need a space for the math teachers to come together to learn more about big math ideas and reflect on how their own mathematical understandings influence their practice.  I am interested in how doing math problems together will influence my own thoughts of collaboration and professional development.

Smith, M. S. (2001). Practice-based professional development for teachers of mathematics.  Reston, VA: NCTM

Smith (2001) states that “Professional development must provide teachers with the opportunity to improve their understanding of mathematics content and to reflect critically on their learning experiences” (p. 42).  Math teachers need the opportunity to not just reflect on what they want their students to know, but what they themselves know about math.  “Teachers must begin by making sense of mathematics.  In considering how students solved the problems, teachers must engage with the mathematical ideas that are at the heart of the tasks (Smith 2001, p. 43)  I believe that by doing math problems together with my colleagues, I will get a better understanding of the mathematical ideas that are at the heart of the tasks that I give my students and will result in a deeper mathematical understanding.

Research Document 2011

1.       The Question

What will I learn about collaborative professional development by getting together with math colleagues and doing math problems together?

2.     The Statement of Purpose

In my previous school, part of my teaching schedule included a weekly meeting with the whole math department.  Either the math coach or the assistant principal led the meetings, and during my first years of teaching, these meeting were especially valuable because they gave me the chance to collaborate with and learn from my colleagues in a formal setting.  This past year was my first year at my current school, Jonas Bronck Academy, and we didn’t have weekly math team meetings.  As a result, one of my biggest challenges this year was finding time to collaborate with the other math teachers at JBA.  “Collaboration is increasingly identified as a key aspect in teachers’ professional growth.  Education reformers have recommended placing more attention on collegial relations of teachers for the purpose of professional growth” (Little, 1992, as cited in Syn-Jong, 2006, p. 178).  Through this research, I want to create a math learning group at JBA that will engage in constructivist mathematical problem solving.  I hope that by getting together with other math colleagues at my school and doing math together, I can get a deeper understanding of what it means to participate in professional development and we can improve our math department at JBA.

3.     Methodology

I will take notes during our meetings to keep track of our discussions.  I will also keep a reflective ongoing blog on my own observations on what I am learning about collaborative professional development with my math colleagues.  I will also ask for feedback from my colleagues participating in the group, on their thoughts on collaboration before, during, and after participating in our learning group.  In the analysis, I will look for concrete examples of any shifts in my thoughts on collaborative professional development.

4.     Resources

Boalar, J., & Humphreys. (2005).  Connecting mathematical ideas: Middle school video cases to support teaching and learning.  Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Fernandes, A, Keohler, J, & Reiter, H. (2011). Mathematics teachers circle around problem solving.  Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School. 17(2), 109-115.

Hiebert, J., et al. (1997). Making sense: Teaching and learning mathematics with understanding.  New Hampshire: Heinmann.

Little, J. W. (1993). Teachers’ professional development in a climate of education reform,

Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis.  15, 129 – 151.

National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM). 2000.  Principles and Standards for School Mathematics.  Reston, VA: NCTM

Smith, M. S. (2001). Practice-based professional development for teachers of mathematics.  Reston, VA: NCTM

5.     Sharing my Research

I intend to share my research by documenting my observations on a Google Blog.  I will post my thoughts and what I am learning about collaborative professional development after each math learning group meeting.  I will also comment on if and how participating in this group is influencing my practice and my growth as a professional and leader.  By sharing my research on a blog on the internet, I hope to also share collaborate with other teachers outside JBA.