Nov 30

OISE hosts mathematics inquiry mini conference with MA Teacher Candidates

The OISE library was abuzz with mathematics learning this morning as OISE’s second year Master of Arts Child Study and Education (MA CSE) teacher candidates presented their final Mathematics Inquiry Projects to teachers, principals, and district leaders at a math mini-conference organized by Dr. Bev Caswell and the Robertson Team. Over three months, teacher candidates developed expertise in an area of mathematics that was of interest to them. They developed 20-minute interactive math workshops based on their inquiry work. Read the teacher handouts on our Exploring Math Concepts through an Inquiry Lens page.

This assignment provided an opportunity for students to become experts and authentically contribute to mathematics education and teacher professional development. Many thanks to Robin Bennett for inspiring us with the idea for this assignment. And a huge thank you to Larisa Lam and Zach Pedersen for organizing and ensuring the success of this event.

We truly appreciate and thank all the teachers, principals, and district leaders who took the time to attend this conference and for providing teacher candidates with an authentic audience. Finally, a very special thank you and congratulations to OISE’s second year MA CSE teacher candidates who worked tirelessly researching, developing content knowledge and designing such stellar workshops their knowledge on their topics! See below for a list of the topics.

What participants had to say

I just wanted to say thank you for inviting us to participate in yesterday’s mini-conference. I feel so inspired by the enthusiasm of your students, and so impressed by the caliber of their inquiries. I spent a great deal of time reflecting on the learning from yesterday, and was so excited to share some of the insights with my colleagues.
-Ken Pettigrew, Principal in Leadership Development |Mathematics | First Nations Métis and Inuit Education|
York Region District School Board
Thank you, for inviting us! It was wonderful to see the student’s presentations. We really appreciated the research and effort they put into making the presentations engaging and relevant to classroom teachers. I know we all walked away with new ideas to try. We hope this becomes an annual event.
-Evita Strobele, Branksome Hall
I wanted to reach out and say what a great mini-conference experience today was for me. The students were all so well prepared and deeply versed in their chosen topics. What a wonderful way to feature student work and empower them to explore these mathematical concepts deeply.
-Tanya Demjanenko, Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study, Grade 5 Teacher
Thanks so much for extending the invite. It was a great PD opportunity. Your students should be applauded for doing such in-depth research and presenting their ideas in accessible ways.
-Kathryn O’Brien, Upper Canada College, Grade 4 Teacher

Topics explored at our event

  • long division
  • learning disabilities in math
  • teaching math through guided discovery
  • developing number sense and using an AL abacus
  • growth mindset
  • math in real world contexts
  • differentiation and assessment
  • supporting second language learners in math
  • robotics
  • math anxiety
  • understanding zero
  • math and creative movement
  • cross-curricular activities to learn math
  • using number lines to support mental math
  • gender stereotypes

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