Preparing Highly Effective Mathematics Teacher Leaders in East San Jose by Focusing on Mathematical Sense-making, Growth Mindset, and Equity

Santa Clara University, Santa Clara CA

Investigators

Abstract

This project aims to serve the regional and the national need to prepare and retain a greater number of high-quality mathematics teachers. It focuses specifically on the development of highly effective mathematics teacher leaders for high-need school districts. The project aims to expand mathematics teaching and learning opportunities, particularly for traditionally underrepresented students. To do so, it will simultaneously address three issues: improve students’ mathematical sense-making; advance students’ growth mindset, e.g., a conviction that that they can learn mathematics; and improve teachers’ skills in mathematics instruction to incorporate research-based practices for engaging English language learners. The project intends to advance teacher education by providing innovative models of teacher professional development, emphasizing teaching for equity, growth mindset, and cultural awareness. In addition, it intends to provide teachers with support that can be sustained within districts beyond the scope of the project and develop teacher leadership skills so that they can help improve mathematics education in an entire school district. This project at Santa Clara University includes partnerships with San Jose's Eastside Union High School District and the Silicon Valley Education Foundation. The project’s six-year goals include preparing and retaining 20 high-quality professional mathematics educators who have the needed skills and commitment to teach in high-need local education agencies in East San Jose, California, and surrounding communities. These mathematics educators will be recruited from mathematics and mathematics-related fields (e.g., engineering). The candidates who do not already possess a master’s degree will be supported in their first year in earning one through the University’s Master of Arts in Teaching plus Teaching Credential program. The project will support the retention of these talented individuals in mathematics teaching through graduate teacher preparation studies that include field/clinical experiences and pedagogical content knowledge preparation, as well as a four-year in-service professional and leadership development sequence. This project will conduct research to determine which professional development activities most effectively build teachers’ capacity to promote growth mindset in their students. The project utilizes an “in-the-moment” coaching approach that is modeled after Lampert and colleagues’ (2013, 2010) rehearsal work supporting pre-service teachers’ enactment of ambitious mathematics instruction. The project is poised to improve student mathematics achievement in high-need schools, as well as increase opportunities for mathematics education and STEM careers for students from under-served communities. This Track 2: Teaching Fellowships project is supported through the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program (Noyce). The Noyce program supports talented STEM undergraduate majors and professionals to become effective K-12 STEM teachers and experienced, exemplary K-12 STEM teachers to become STEM master teachers in high-need school districts. It also supports research on the persistence, retention, and effectiveness of K-12 STEM teachers in high-need school districts. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.