The mathematical knowledge young children develop is critical to their later academic achievement. Strong math skills in kindergarten have been linked to later proficiency not only in mathematics, but also in reading and may even lead to increased high-school-graduation rates. On the other hand, children who begin school with poor math skills typically do not catch up. The least prepared are disproportionately children of color and those from low-income families. Clearly, any serious effort to close the achievement gap needs to focus on children’s mathematical learning before school entry and in the early elementary grades.
With an $850K grant from the Heising-Simons Foundation, Deborah Stipek & Susan O'Hara, from the Graduate School of Education, and Megan Francke, from UCLA, partner to develop knowledge about effective strategies for improving math instruction with a diverse population of pre-K through 3rd grade children. The team will design, implement, and assess a model professional-development program that prepares educators to serve effectively instructional leadership roles and increase the capacity of California community colleges and universities to prepare effective teachers of mathematics in preschool and the early elementary grades.
This project is led by Deborah Stipek and Susan O'Hara from Stanford University and Megan Francke from UCLA and funded by the Heising-Simons Foundation.
