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abstract:
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Systemic Reform of Mathematics 6-12 for Rural Virginia
(SRMRV), a five-year project designed to encourage and implement systemic
change in the high schools and middle schools of five school divisions in rural
Virginia, is a partnership between Virginia Tech and the public schools of
Buckingham County, Craig County, Montgomery County, Nottoway County,
and Roanoke City.
Each of the 174 mathematics teachers in the participating
schools engages in professional development built around nationally developed,
cutting-edge, NSF-funded instructional material that is to replace traditional
textbooks. The project's major objective is to provide all 174 mathematics
teachers with the background and resources to achieve whole-school reform in
mathematics through the implementation of a mathematically integrated,
problem-solving-based curriculum.
As a Local Systemic Change through
Teacher Enhancement in Mathematics, Grades 7-12, project, the professional
development in SRMRV has a focus on strengthening content and renewing
pedagogy. Twelve mathematics teachers in one high school, where the teachers
have already engaged in significant professional development, receive 131
hours of enhancement. Participants who teach both middle and high school
mathematics receive 268 hours of professional development. All other middle
and high school mathematics teachers receive 173 hours.
The teacher
enhancement curriculum is structured around: ten-day (two-week) summer
workshops; academic-year experiences that carry credit as graduate courses;
five-day (one-week) summer workshops that follow the two-week summer
workshops and intervening graduate courses; and two-hour, follow-up,
academic-year sessions. The project also incorporates a small research
component on the use of technology in the classroom.
Quantitative and
qualitative methodologies will capture the various phases of technology use,
addressing such questions as:
* What aspects of technology are important?
*
How does tech nology interact with curriculum?
* How do students use
technology?
* How do teachers use technology?
Cost-sharing, which is
approximately 158% of the NSF-request, is derived from the participating
school divisions and Virginia Tech.
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