Highlights

The Greater Birmingham Mathematics Partnership held its last professional development session for 36 Mathematics Support Team Teachers (MSTs) on May 8, 2012 at Birmingham-Southern College.  As a finale to our work with, and to celebrate the accomplishments of these teacher leaders, GBMP arranged for a luncheon/presentation sponsored by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in the Executive Dining Room at Birmingham-Southern College featuring Dr. Matt Larson as the guest speaker.  In addition to the MSTs, GBMP invited the Superintendents and Principals from all GBMP partner districts and schools.      

Dr. Larson (right), Curriculum Specialist for Mathematics for the Lincoln Public Schools in Lincoln, Nebraska, made a presentation to the group entitled “The Common Core State Standards for Mathematics: Will They Matter Ten Years from Now?”  His central argument was that the adoption of new content standards in and of itself may improve overall student achievement, but is unlikely to reduce learning differentials that currently exist because most variation in achievement occurs within states that already have common content standards.  In order for implementation of the CCSSM to raise the achievement of all students and simultaneously make an appreciable difference in closing learning differentials, implementation efforts surrounding the CCSSM must address five fundamental paradigm shifts:

If all five paradigm shifts are addressed, then the CCSSM is likely to remain a significant force in mathematics education into the foreseeable future and positively impact the learning of all students.

Dr. Larson's dynamic presentation was very well received. On post session surveys, 96% of those attending the lecture "agreed" or "strongly agreed" that the presentation was "informative and of practical value." Survey results for the MSTs (only) concerning the MST program as whole, also yielded very affirming results.  Ninety-seven percent (97%) of the MSTs responded that they "agreed" or "strongly agreed" with the following survey items:  

1.       The multi-year MST program has strengthened my mathematical content knowledge.

2.       The multi-year MST program has strengthened my understanding of how to implement inquiry-based instruction.

3.       The multi-year MST program has strengthened my leadership skills.

4.       The MSTs are a community of learners that has developed trust and mutual respect.

Identifying and working with MSTs, mathematics teachers who took the responsibility to be building-level leaders in improving mathematics instruction at their schools, was a focus of GBMP dating back to the early days of National Science Foundation support in 2004-2005. Over the course of the the project, 2005-2012, several cohorts of Mathematics Support Team teachers have received, in total, nearly 16,000 hours of professional development by means of  MST sessions. 

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