Professional Development for Early Childhood Mathematics Education Herbert P. Ginsburg Teachers College Columbia University STEM Summit February 18, 2010
Overview The goals are to explain why we need extensive professional development to implement early mathematics education and what PD should entail And to describe a pre-service program (VITAL) and an in-service model (child study/lesson study)
Background According to the NAS Committee on Early Childhood Mathematics: When given the appropriate learning opportunities, young children can become competent in mathematics. Recommendation: A coordinated national early childhood mathematics initiative should be put in place to improve mathematics teaching and learning for all children ages 3 to 6.
Further Young children can benefit from: Intentional teaching Planned curriculum An extensive focus on number and geometry Experiences that promote not only procedures and facts, but also: concepts, mathematical thinking, math talk, and mathematizing
Much is needed to accomplish this My focus will be on the early childhood teachers: Who are they? What do they need? How can we help them to be come good teachers?
Who are they? Demographics (from the committee report) 2.3 million in ECE workforce 24% employed in centers, 28% in family child care, and 48% in informal family, friend, and neighbor BA or More Pre-K 73% Head Start 36% Center-based 30% Home-based 11%
Compensation Significantly lower than K-12 teacher compensation Average preschool teacher salary: $25,800 Average child care worker salary: $19,670 Average Head Start teacher salary: $24,608 Many ECE teachers do not receive health insurance benefits from their employers (So why should talented people go into this field?) 7
Poor preparation They seldom get extensive and appropriate math education training in higher education Colleges give the least training in the subject with which prospective teachers need the most help! They seldom get extensive and appropriate in-service training once they are in the classrooms
Also, in general, they: Think children cannot learn abstract math Don t understand the math Believe that social-emotional development and play should be emphasized above all else Believe teaching and curriculum are developmentally inappropriate Teach math badly (if they do teach it) Are afraid of math and don t want to teach it thus:
My students say: Math has always been a dreaded subject for me. I have yet to think of math in a positive way. In fact I have to take a math course for my New York certification, and I'm trying my hardest to find a way around it. My previous history as a poor math student makes me fear teaching math to young children in the future, that being partially my reason for choosing early childhood education.
What do they need to learn? To get over their fear and appreciate the importance of math To understand the math To understand children s math abilities To form actionable and specific connections between theory and practice (no vague ideology) To assess and teach To implement a curriculum
Pre-service professional development There are very few college level courses that focus on early childhood mathematics education (age 3 to grade 2) With NSF support, we have created a model course with several features This is of course only one approach and more is needed
Four components of VITAL A course syllabus (in many different subject matter areas, like couples therapy and arts education) New technology and pedagogy for clipping Higher education classroom pedagogy Digital library
Course in early mathematics education at TC (and elsewhere) Content goals: Children s mathematical thinking Pedagogy Curriculum Mathematics Assessment (particularly clinical interview) Traditional: syllabus, weekly readings (on the new research) and class meetings
Class syllabus
Example: One week s reading Talbot, M. (2006) The Baby Lab. New Yorker; 9/4/2006, Vol. 82 Issue 27, pp. 90-101 Ginsburg, H. P. (1989). Children s Arithmetic (Second edition). Austin, TX: Pro-Ed. Chapter 2: "Learning to Count" Gelman, R. (2000). The epigenesis of mathematical thinking. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 21(1), 27-37. Ramani, G. B., & Siegler, R. S. (2008). Promoting Broad and Stable Improvements in Low-Income Children s Numerical Knowledge Through Playing Number Board Games Child Development, 79(2), 375-394.
But a larger context for the reading
Course library
Example of assignment In what ways does Olivia understand or not understand addition? What mistakes did the interviewer make in interviewing her? Cite evidence to support your argument. Given what you saw, what would you do to teach her addition?
Example of video
Workspace and clipping
An Essay
Classroom Pedagogy Classroom analysis of videos as we did it The instructor models Close observation Specification of evidence Interpretation Challenge hypotheses Offer alternative hypotheses Social interaction: argument and collaboration Respect for reason and modesty
Final project Choose a topic to teach Review the literature Videotape teaching of a lesson Videotape clinical interview of a child before and after the lesson Write a VITAL essay, embedding key video evidence, analyzing teaching and interpreting student s learning
The humble, low tech reflection After each class, a few sentences on something important you learned I responded to all Started the next class with selected reflections that raised interesting issues or alternative points A strange kind of intimacy that included discussion of students fears and anxieties
In-service Professional Development It has to be very intensive because: Most new teachers coming into the system are likely to be poorly trained Teachers already in the system were also poorly trained and in general have avoided math teaching for many years
Key components of in-service PD Unlike pre-service, training is tied directly to the use of a curriculum Training is extensive and ongoing, including an initial training at the outset of the school year, with follow-up sessions Teachers are supported through onsite coaching at least once per month Teachers have opportunities for handson practice, discussion, and collaboration
Child study/lesson study model We have developed an approach in which: Teachers plan a lesson based on the existing curriculum A teacher tries it out with her class She interviews several students (high, medium, low) about what they have learned Teachers meet to discuss videos of the lesson and the interviews The entire process repeats over the year
Conclusion The children can learn math There are several good curricula for teaching it The weakest link is the teachers We have done a terrible job of preparing them and supporting them We need extensive professional development at all levels (for professors of ECME, for prospective teachers, for practicing teachers This is a massive job but unless we do it, we will not succeed in implementing effective early math education
Contact information Herbert P. Ginsburg Jacob H. Schiff Foundation Professor of Psychology and Education Teachers College Columbia University Department of Human Development 542 Grace Dodge Hall 525 W. 120 th Street New York, NY 10027 212.678.3443 ginsburg@tc.edu