Growing Math Teachers and Institutional Agents

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Growing Math Teachers and Institutional Agents

• Katrine Czajkowski (Mar Vista HS)
• Rafaela M. Santa Cruz (SDSU)

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Background

• Will take advantage of relationships developed
  with mathematics teachers through SDSU
  professional development projects such as the San
  Diego Mathematics Project and the Professional
  Development Collaborative.
• Will add to the services provided by various
  outreach programs such as the SDSU Compact for
  Success and the College Readiness Program
• Will build on SDSU community college transfer
  programs

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Objectives

• Increase the number of community college advanced
  mathematics students who successfully transfer to
  bachelors-granting IHEs, earning degrees in
  mathematics and science
• Develop relationships among successful, diverse
  community college students and aspiring, diverse
  high school students
• Integrate community college student math tutors
  within supportive communities of exemplary high
  school teachers

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Central components

• Recruit diverse community college students
  currently enrolled in advanced mathematics
  courses
• Hire community college students to serve as AVID
  tutors in high school math classes
• Train and support tutors to work closely with
  both students and teachers
• Support practicing teachers to serve as mentors
  and role models for classroom tutors
• Encourage and support tutors successful
  transition to bachelors-granting IHEs
• Maintain long-term relationships with tutors and
  encourage them to consider pursuing careers as
  secondary math and science teachers

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1. Recruit diverse community college students
currently enrolled in advanced mathematics courses

• Seek students enrolled in Calculus II or more
  advanced math courses.
• Visit classes to explain the value of bicultural
  and bilingual contributions to local schools.
• Explain mutual benefits of participation with
  shared goals.
• Nurture teacher-to-teacher relationships between
  college and high school instructors

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2. Hire community college students to serve as
AVID tutors in high school math classes

• Concentrate placement of tutors at limited sites
  for maximum coherence and support.
• Offer competitive pay that does not undercut
  complementary initiatives.
• Connect the program to categorical efforts
  supporting implementation of the Consolidated
  Site Plan at participating high schools.
• Assign tutors to work with a specific group of
  cooperating teachers at each site.
• Develop, implement and monitor use of a
  collaborative model maximizing tutor
  contributions to classrooms.

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3. Train and support tutors to work closely with
both students and teachers

• Clearly communicate tutor and teacher roles and
  expectations. Consider writing job
  descriptions.
• Build tutors work schedules around their college
  schedules and provide as many hours as requested
  or possible (10-19/wk).
• Place tutors in classrooms and after-school
  programs/services.
• Recognize initiative and collaboration by
  providing extra duty pay for teachers and tutors.

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3. Train and support tutors to work closely with
both students and teachers

• Introduce tutors to critical measures of external
  evaluation of students, teachers and schools
  (API/AYP, CAHSEE, CSTs (and EAP), ELM, etc.)
• Provide frequent opportunities for tutors to meet
  and discuss their efforts and related issues (at
  least monthly).
• Expose tutors to Math Project workshops and
  opportunities.
• Acknowledge, validate, and address the
  contradictions and conflicts tutors encounter and
  engage.

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4. Support practicing teachers to serve as
mentors and role models for classroom tutors

• Identify teachers with strong content knowledge,
  pedagogical expertise, concern for equity, and
  leadership capacity.
• Build a team (3-4) of these individuals and
  follow their direction regarding placement of
  tutors.
• Assign tutors to these teachers classrooms in
  groups.
• Provide teachers with training regarding tutor
  use and instructional strategies maximizing
  their contributions.
• Pay teachers for the extra time required to
  participate.

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5. Encourage and support tutors successful
transition to bachelors-granting IHEs

• Nurture relationships between tutors and
  teachers.
• Encourage networking among tutors.
• Provide opportunities for tutors to lead
  curriculum development, instructional activity
  design, formative assessment of student progress,
  etc.
• Match work schedules to college schedules.
• Provide flexibility when necessary finals,
  schedule changes, weekly hour changes, etc.
• Ensure tutors consistent access to supportive
  staff at both high school and college levels.

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6. Maintain long-term relationships with tutors
and encourage them to consider pursuing careers
as secondary math and science teachers

• Invest time in learning about tutors lives
  outside of work.
• Help tutors with practical issues transcripts,
  reference letters, contacts at IHEs, summer
  work, etc.
• Provide varied educational experiences classroom
  tutoring, after-school service, professional and
  curriculum development, extracurricular
  activities, etc.
• Celebrate accomplishments course completions,
  transfers, graduations, weddings, children, etc.!

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Summary

• Many gifted high school math students do not
  enroll in four-year schools upon graduation.
• Too many successful high school students from
  marginalized communities leave four-year schools
  within their first two years.
• Motivated community college students may have
  maturity and life experience that translate to
  staying power needed to become certificated
  math teachers.
• The diversity of community college students
  mirrors demographics of many CA High Schools.
  This diversity is painfully lacking among current
  math teachers in most schools.