Math Seminar 2024
Download speaker presentations in the agenda below.
EWA Math Seminar in Fall 2024
Just how bad are Americans at math?
In 2022, U.S. 15-year-olds ranked below average in an international math test compared to students from peer countries, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Recent national tests show math scores declined as students got older. Meanwhile, two-thirds of American adults report experiencing math anxiety. What should journalists understand about math education? Researchers and colleagues provide context Oct. 24-25 during EWA’s 2024 Math Seminar in Fort Worth, Texas. The theme is “Adding It Up: How to Cover Math Education.”
The new day-and-a-half conference looks at issues ranging from the math lessons that hold kids back to math tracking. Additionally, the conference provides journalists with a notebook full of story ideas and connects them with experts to help inform coverage of math education.
Among the subjects explored:
- A series of talks by researchers and experts on critical issues in math education.
- What is the critical skill every student should learn to successfully understand algebra and other high school math subjects?
- What is the state of equity in how math is taught in schools? Is tracking holding back students?
- The “Reading Wars” are well known. Math education has its own controversies. Learn about them.
- Advice through a solutions-journalism lens about covering math education
Photo credit: peshkov/Bigstock
EWA is grateful to the Gates Foundation for providing the major funding that made this seminar possible. EWA retains editorial control over all programming
Agenda
WXYZ Lounge
In a two-part series of TED-style talks, experts and educators describe major facets of math education that journalists should consider in their coverage. The talks are listed by topic and in chronological order.
- Jo Napolitano, The 74 (facilitator)
9 a.m. – 10 a.m.
The Big Picture
Experts discuss major themes in math education.
- Presentation | Cognitive Science of Math: John Mighton, JUMP Math
- Presentation | Equity Issues: Melodie Baker, Just Equations
- Presentation | Teacher Training: Taajah Witherspoon, The University of Alabama at Birmingham
10 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.
Break
10:15 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.
Issues in the Classroom
Experts discuss how math is taught.
- Presentation | Children’s Number Sense: Danielle Robinson, Milwaukee Public Schools
- Presentation | Dyscalculia: Angel Filer, TouchMath
- Presentation | Fractions are a Gateway to Algebra: Nancy Jordan, University of Delaware
- Presentation | The High School Math Hierarchy: Josh Recio, The University of Texas at Austin
In a follow-up to the morning talks, experts and educators meet with journalists for in-depth discussions of math education issues. Journalists rotate three times during the roundtables.
WXYZ Lounge
Three journalists share tips from their deep and nuanced reporting on math education. This includes discussion of why middle schools are fertile ground for sources and stories, a teacher-turned-journalist’s tips for making math coverage relevant and engaging, and what American educators can learn from international efforts to boost student achievement.
- Trisha Powell Crain, Alabama Daily News/Alabama Public Television
- Colin Hogan, The New Bedford Light
- Christina Samuels, The Hechinger Report
- Jacob Sanchez, Fort Worth Report (moderator)
Experts walk journalists through using math educator survey data to inform their stories on math education. The discussion includes what curriculum teachers use, what math classes they teach, and what requirements schools and districts impose on students trying to register for certain advanced math classes.
- Kate Brittain, MGT
- Lauren Covelli, RAND
- Sascha Raiyn, WDET (moderator)
Presentation: Kate Brittain and Lauren Covelli
Participants break out into groups and discuss story ideas. Journalist facilitators guide reporters through the best approaches for pitching a variety of math-ed stories, ranging from quick-turn dailies to enterprise and long-term investigations.
- Kalyn Belsha, Chalkbeat
- Trisha Powell Crain, Alabama Daily News/Alabama Public Television
- Talia Richman, The Dallas Morning News
- Monica Velez, EdSource
- Jacob Sanchez, Fort Worth Report
WXYZ Lounge
WXYZ Lounge
What’s one strategy for getting students interested and engaged in math instruction? Playing a game. Learn about The Flagway Game, played by fifth through eighth graders who are coached by older students, known as “math literacy workers.”
Participants demonstrate a mastery of mathematical principles, with the added benefits of exercise and teamwork. Get up out of your seats, not just to learn about the game, but to play it.
- Timinte Abraham, The Young People’s Project
- Noore Elkatta, The Young People’s Project
- Marquis Lowe, The Young People’s Project
- Maisha Moses, The Young People’s Project
Presentation: The Young People’s Project
Video: 2019 National Flagway Tournament
The session takes place in the nearby PalmWood Event & Conference at 640 Taylor St., Suite 1300, Fort Worth, TX.
Please meet in the hotel lobby at 8:40 a.m., so we can walk over to the session. It’s a few blocks away and should take four minutes. Please let an EWA staffer know if you need alternate ground transportation.
A central battle waged in the Math Wars centers on conceptual instruction vs. instruction on procedures. Two experts debate where concepts and procedures fit into high-quality instruction. Their differing viewpoints demonstrate what a lesson might look like in their ideal classrooms.
- Presentation | Kentaro Iwasaki, Concentric Math
- Presentation | Amanda VanDerHeyden, SpringMath
- Jill Barshay, The Hechinger Report (moderator)
WXYZ Lounge
For more than 40 years, experts have debated the merits of “tracking,” the practice of placing students in accelerated or remedial pathways for math. But is tracking a solution, or does it create more problems? Three experts discuss the various forms of tracking policies and how they affect students’ achievements in math.
- Presentation | Kentaro Iwasaki, Concentric Math
- Presentation | Tom Loveless, author
- Presentation | Jennifer Saenz, Strive Together
- Daniel Mollenkamp, EdSurge (moderator)
