Mike Mays, West Virginia University professor of mathematics, has been selected as a partner in the Mathematics Teacher Education-Partnership, a collaboration begun by the Science and Mathematics Teacher Imperative of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities.

The Mathematics Teacher Education Partnership is a partnership of institutions of higher education and K-12 schools, districts and other organizations working collaboratively to redesign secondary mathematics teacher preparation programs. The partnership will provide a coordinated research and development effort for secondary mathematics teacher preparation programs in order to meet the challenges of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics and to embody research and best practices in the field.

“This is an exciting project. The Common Core State Standards are of national scope and importance, and West Virginia has been a leader in adopting these standards to guide its Next Generation K-12 mathematics content,” Mays said. “The Mathematics Teacher Education Partnership will make sure that the new secondary mathematics teachers that we prepare around the state have opportunities to engage with the Standards, especially the eight Standards for Mathematical Practice, throughout their programs, by seeing the Standards in use throughout their mathematics and mathematics education courses.”

Mays had worked with Gary Martin, Auburn University professor of secondary mathematics education, who was one of the original proposers of the idea, last year on another project connected with the Common Core State Standards (http://www.corestandards.org/the-standards/mathematics). Mays eventually joined the planning committee.

“I view this as a critical step needed to solve significant challenges facing our state and nation in the teaching and learning of mathematics,” said Eberly College of Arts and Sciences Dean Robert Jones.

“In my opinion, the faculty participants have the experience and credentials to build a functional partnership and the University and State Partners have sufficient commitment to provide a path to success. The Math Education Faculty in WVU’s Department of Mathematics can provide capable guidance and leadership. Over the past decade, this group has grown in numbers, impact and has been productive in scholarship and teacher preparation. The math education group has examined a variety of models for teacher preparation and math learning; the MTE-partnership will provide a venue for expanding their best practices and testing them across a diverse set of educational environments.”

As a partner, Mays will participate in the cooperative redesign of secondary mathematics teacher preparation programs to ensure knowledgeable beginning mathematics teachers who can effectively teach the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics, including building consensus on guiding principles underlying such programs and developing and undertaking a collaborative research and development agenda necessary to catalyzing the transformation of such programs nationally. He and his partners will assist in stimulating use of model programs and practices created by the partnership within, and promoting changes in state’s program approval, accreditation, and other policies necessary to support the changes.

Mays currently serves as the director of the WVU Institute for Mathematics Learning.

For more information, please contact Mike Mays, professor of mathematics at 304-293-2011 ext 2324 or at mays@math.wvu.edu.

-WVU-

cs/2/29/2012

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