Lateefah Id-Deen is an associate professor of mathematics education at Kennesaw State University and the founder of Loyal Educational Consulting. She works alongside teachers to incorporate culturally responsive pedagogical practices that promote student-teacher relationships, affirm mathematics identities, and cultivate belongingness to support students’ learning experiences in mathematics classrooms. Her work reflects her passion for creating equitable learning environments for historically marginalized students in mathematics classrooms. Connect with her on X @Prof_IdDeenL or LinkedIn/Facebook Lateefah Id-Deen
“Mathematics teachers can stand for hope and transformation, shaping the intellectual and emotional growth of their students. Within the intricate tapestry of mathematics education, there exist pivotal moments—some deliberate, others serendipitous—where individual teachers wield the power to create more just and equitable classrooms…”
For more information, contact W. Gary Martin, Department of Curriculum & Teaching, martiwg@auburn.edu or Melinda Lanius, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, melinda.lanius@auburn.edu
The Math Masters Competition 2024 will be in Frank Brown Hall on March 16, 2024.
You are receiving this to invite students (and Colleagues) to consider participating as a Master Teacher.
(No need to worry …. we supply the question and the answer! Your job as a Master Teacher is to be convinced that the young students who present not only have a solution BUT they understand how and why their solution works. You will work with other Master Teachers as well!)
The CRMC staff would value and greatly appreciate your help this year.
If you are interested, please fill out this link to participate as a master teacher this year:
Mentors play an essential role in the development of new teachers and, to be effective, must carry out certain activities in support of their protégé. The following list of five essential responsibilities of an effective mentor was gathered from discussions with mentor teachers and protégés from the text Empowering the Mentor (NCTM, 2009, 12-13).
Provide a Solid Foundation
As a main contributor to the support structure for a new teacher, the mentor assists his or her protégé with day-to-day administrative tasks to allow the protégé to focus on teaching. Moreover, the mentor supports the protégés in handling discipline issues that might hinder effective teaching.
Sharing Ideas and Information as a Good Colleague
A good colleague might be defined as a coworker who takes on the other four responsibilities listed here. As a good colleague, a mentor keeps his or her protégé informed about school events or traditions, shares ideas, and co-plans. True collegiality benefits both the protégé and the mentor. The protégé gains the benefit of the mentor’s insider knowledge of the school system in which they both work while the mentor learns new ideas from the protégé and may be inspired to vary classroom actives by the process of knowledge sharing.
Acting as the Portege’s Cheerleader
Beginning teachers need praise and encouragement. An effective mentor realizes when his or her protégé is struggling and tries to boost the protégés morale. The mentor may work with the protégé during planning time or offer encouraging words over a cup of coffee or a meal after school.
Promoting Reflection on Practice
Good mentors encourage reflection on practice in their protégés. Having new teachers reflect on the vents that take place in the classroom rather than tell them what went wrong or right helps them develop self-reliance and the skills to become better teachers. In this role, mentors need to strike a balance between providing support and micromanaging their protégés. Encouraging reflection helps new teachers think about and solve problems for themselves, not become mimics of their mentors.
Offering Constructive Criticism
Finally, effective mentors provide timely and reliant feedback. Protégés need encouragement and praise, but they also need to know where they can make improvements in their teaching. if the mentor has provided a firm foundation for the protégé, acted as a good colleague and cheerleader, and encouraged reflection on practice, then the protégé is more likely to be receptive to constructive criticism. If the mentor has not fulfilled these roles, the protégé may become defensive. Receiving feedback that enables learning and improvement is essential to the growth of the protégé. Mentors must learn to provide this feedback in a way that prompts acceptance rather than reflection.
Please use this email to assist your protégés, mentor teachers, and any others who may find it valuable,
Uplifting, Valuing, and Belonging in Mathematics is rooted in knowing each student brings a unique source of knowledge to the mathematics classroom, representative of their authentic experiences of family, community, and culture.
The NCTM 2024 Regional Conference & Exposition theme, Everyone Belongs Here, aims to celebrate and embrace the experiences and differences that make each child unique.
The conference will explore instructional practices that create safe learning spaces where students’ voices, thoughts, and ideas are heard; their math identities thrive; and they are secure in knowing they are valued, they matter, and they belong. Join us February 7–9 in Seattle for three days of learning, networking, and opportunities for growing professionally and personally.
Our next K-12 Teacher Chat is Wednesday, April 12 at 4:30pm Eastern time. We are fortunate to have Gemma Mojica and her team from the NC State InSTEP project join us describing resources to support your professional learning about teaching statistics and data. The InSTEP team recently launched a free personalized professional learning platform (instepwithdata.org) to support teachers and instructional coaches in developing expertise in teaching statistics and data science in grades 6-12+. The InSTEP team will share key features and resources from this personalized professional learning platform and engage you in a data investigation with real multivariate data using an online data visualization and analysis tool, CODAP. Joining from a laptop or tablet will be best for this session. We look forward to seeing you at the chat.
Additionally, April is Mathematics and Statistics Awareness Month, and the ASA GivesBack leadership team would love to host a virtual career panel discussion for your class! Our leaders come from a variety of backgrounds, all with connections to mathematics and/or statistics, and we are interesting in sharing the stories of our career paths with your students. This would be an opportunity for students who might be interested in pursuing mathematics/statistics to ask questions to early career professionals about navigating college, choosing a career, etc. There will also be discussions around the importance for everyone to be statistically literate, regardless of career path.
If you are interested, please fill out the form below with your contact information and your class’ availability, and we will do our best to accommodate your schedule:
DREAM-Math was established to help Develop, Recruit, and Empower Alabama Mathematics Teachers. With the help of the National Science Foundation and our partners, we hope to provide many high need school districts in our area with well-trained and highly-qualified secondary mathematics teachers.
Post from the Auburn University Alumni Organization.
Published by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics
East Alabama Council for Teachers of Mathematics 