MSU Math Ed at MES 11

Several MSU Mathematics Education faculty members and doctoral students presented last week at the virtual Eleventh International Mathematics Education and Society Conference (MES 11): Exploring new ways to connect.

Mathematics Education and Society (MES) is an international community that is interested in the social, ethical, and political dimensions of mathematics education. The conference ran from September 24-29, 2021.

Current MSU faculty and doctoral students who presented include Tonya Bartell, Beth Herbel-Eisenmann, Brent Jackson, and Katie Westby. Two recent graduates who also presented were David Bowers (2021) and Frances Harper (2017).

Tonya Bartell, Brent Jackson and Katie Westby presented a research paper from the Access, Agencies, and Allies in Mathematical Systems  (A3IMS) research project titled Engagement and resistance in an equity-focused professional development: Toward caring with awareness.

Tonya commented, “Katie presented our work at the conference where we are exploring the participation of one teacher in a professional development focused on equitable mathematics teaching from a systems-perspective.”

Here is the abstract from their talk: Teacher development toward equity should support teachers in seeing the ways in which their practice, and efforts to improve their practice, are part of larger social and political histories and structures so that they can then disrupt oppressive systems influencing students’ opportunities to learn mathematics. We examine one teacher’s engagement with an equity-focused PD designed with this need in mind and explore what their experiences suggest about transitions from caring to caring with awareness, explicitly considering race, culture, and power in relation to academic achievement. 

Tonya continued, “I will also say that I enjoy MES because it is one (or the) only International conference that I attend and, historically, attendees from the US have been less than half of the conference attendees. I appreciate their efforts to foreground critical lenses and to work to ever improve the organization/conference – there is definitely work to be done toward creating a more equitable conference.”

Beth Herbel-Eisenmann gave the Opening Address with David Kollosche, and also presented a research paper.

David Bowers, who graduated this summer, was invited to give a Plenary response, and he also presented a research paper.

Frances Harper, a recent graduate, also presented at MES11.

MSU presentations from faculty, current students, and alumni appear below:

Tonya Bartell, Brent Jackson and Katie Westby presented a research paper from the A3IMS research project titled

Engagement and resistance in an equity-focused professional development: Toward caring with awareness

 

Beth Herbel-Eisenmann gave the Opening Address with David Kollosche.

 She also presented a Research Paper, titled

“Minoritised mathematics students are motivated by gratitude”: An analysis of storylines in Norwegian public media

 

Frances Harper, Summer 2017 graduate of the PRIME program, presented in the Symposium category:

Parenting and educating in mathematics: Parental engagement during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic

 

David Bowers, Summer 2021 graduate of the PRIME program, gave an Invited Plenary Response: Urgency and the shameful escape of privilege: We move differently when we refuse to set aside the weight - A call to action with Parra

David also presented a Research Paper, titled

Anarchism as a methodological foundation in mathematics education: A portrait of resistance