Dear Educators,
We know the struggle with mathematics鈥攆or both teachers and students鈥攁ll too well. Students鈥� math scores, as per the 鈥淣ation鈥檚 Report Card,鈥� have plunged to record lows. Misconceptions in early grades can mushroom into large knowledge gaps in later ones, which can barricade students from higher-level math courses. And the very subject can trigger anxiety and negative feelings.
As schools spend millions of dollars remediating math learning, they need to help teachers find useful ways to tackle the common problems that crop up, year after year, in teaching fundamental math concepts.
Here鈥檚 where Education Week鈥檚 latest offering comes in. We鈥檝e curated the best evidence-backed teaching strategies into a five-week email mini-course that you can take anytime, anywhere. Through extensive research and expert consultations, we鈥檝e identified five key areas of math instruction, which include strategies to teach tricky concepts like fractions, and tips on how to quell math anxiety in students.
The course is called Teaching Math, and it officially begins Oct. 1.
Over five weeks, participants get one easy-to-digest lesson a week on key aspects of assessing and addressing the learning gaps on crucial math topics. Learn why word problems are especially tricky for some students and what to do about it; how students build procedural fluency as they move from concrete to abstract mathematics; how to effectively deal with student anxiety about math; and which teaching methods best address misconceptions about fractions.
Mini-Course: Teaching Math
Each edition is written, curated, and edited by two Education Week staffers: Sarah D. Sparks, an assistant editor and writer who has covered education research for nearly 20 years, and Olina Banerji (that鈥檚 me), a staff writer who covers school leadership, education technology, and curriculum.
Here鈥檚 what you can expect from Education Week鈥檚 mini-course on teaching math:
- Concise, straightforward explanations from EdWeek journalists on the best practices for teaching math across grade levels.
- Lessons from leading-edge research on how to help students make sense of tricky math concepts and feel more confident in the subject.
- Informative videos with tips and strategies to boost student learning.
- Advice from experts in the field on how to address common math challenges.
- A deeper, more nuanced understanding of how to teach math so that students learn.
- A certificate of completion for three hours of professional development.
Signing up is free and easy. Just click here!
Once the course begins, you will get an edition of the course every week, but you鈥檙e free to digest the material at your own pace. A pre- and post-course quiz will help you solidify your learning, and you can even get your colleagues to sign up to turn this into a professional development opportunity.
The mini-course is underwritten by a grant from the Spencer Foundation, a Chicago-based philanthropy that supports research in education. But the content has been solely crafted by Education Week writers and editors.
We hope this sneak-peek has piqued your interest to sign up for Teaching Math, designed specifically for busy professionals like you who need just-in-time professional development and quick access to information that can help solve teaching problems in the classroom.
I鈥檓 look forward to meeting again, as Sarah and I take you on this math mini-sojourn!
Best,
Olina Banerji
Editor, Teaching Math
