Mini-Courses

research/me-search work between sessions, and teachers will be asked if they consent to have their course participation and materials used in research.

Dr. Grace A. Chen is an Assistant Professor/Faculty Fellow at New York University. A former high school mathematics teacher, she studies how teachers navigate the ethical complexities of working in unjust systems.

Rehumanizing Mathematics K-8 p Facilitator: Kara Imm, Ph.D. TUESDAYS, FEB 7, FEB 14, FEB 28 MƒA

We know that mathematics has often felt dehumanizing to Queer, Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and other marginalized people. In this course, we will explore the kinds of experiences that have felt dehumanizing and begin to envision and design ways of doing mathematics that are rehumanizing. First, we will make sense of the eight dimensions of the “ Rehumanizing Mathematics” framework (Gutierrez, 2018): (1) participation/positioning, (2) cultures/our/ their stories, (3) windows/mirrors, (4) living practice/ futures, (5) broadening mathematics, (6) creation, (7) body/emotions, and (8) ownership/stewardship. Then, we will locate both dehumanizing and rehumanizing practices within our schools, classrooms, and teaching practices. Finally, we will take action to rehumanize mathematics for the students we serve. The course is designed for any elementary or middle school teachers dissatisfied with the current “equity” movement within mathematics education and searching for critical and radical alternatives.

Dr. Kara Imm is a K-12 mathematics educator based in New York City. In her more than 20-year career, she has been a middle and high school mathematics teacher, staff developer, leadership coach, and teacher education faculty. At MƒA, Kara has designed and led over 20 courses on design thinking, mathematical routines, models and modeling, developing a coaching practice, early algebra, and more. Kara has written several articles and books with and for teachers on the teaching and learning of mathematics. A proud graduate of Minneapolis Public Schools, Kara earned degrees from Stanford University and Bank Street College of Education. Her recent Ph.D. in Urban Education from The Graduate Center, The City University of New York, investigated the impact of mathematical modeling on high school girls of color who had experienced the gate-keeping effects of algebra.

Rolling in the Deep: Exploring Energy With Student-Designed Roller Coasters

Facilitator: MƒA Master Teacher Tim Tschurjumov

WEDNESDAYS, MAR 1, MAR 8, MAR 15 MƒA  SCIENCE

Most of us remember riding our first roller coaster with a mixture of fear and glee. The slow inch forward followed by dramatic speed, loops, and swirls that seemed to defy gravity. Roller coasters are the perfect phenomena to teach a variety of physics topics, particularly the law of conservation of energy. In this mini-course, we’ll explore this law as we build our own roller coasters. First, we’ll examine an exemplar project from a 9th grade physics classroom where students designed and built roller coaster models. Next, we’ll get our hands dirty and develop our own models using everyday materials such as cardboard and paper. Finally, we’ll discuss how we can use our roller coasters and design-based projects to model the conservation of energy, both analytically and qualitatively. This course is designed for middle and high school science and engineering teachers, especially those who teach energy.

Tim Tschurjumov is an MƒA Master Teacher and science teacher at Humanities Preparatory Academy in Manhattan.

Sunrise, Sunset: Deriving the Duration of Our Days Facilitators: Paul McDowell, Lawrence Whitfield, and MƒA Early Career Teacher Elissa Levy

TUESDAYS, MAY 30, JUN 6, JUN 13

ONLINE  MATHEMATICS

What time does our Sun rise and set at any day of the year and at any location on Earth? Join us as we answer these questions and strengthen our understanding of the Earth/Sun system. We will start by addressing four “assumptions:” the duration of a year, the tilt of the Earth, the shape of our planet as a sphere, and the shape of our orbit as a circle. From describing a sphere to deriving the length of any day at any location on Earth, we will move through a series of steps using high school algebra and geometry. We will supplement the derivation with original GeoGebra simulations modeling the system as seen from space and Earth. To conclude, we will compare our derivation