Citation: Dr Ann Gervasoni. For contributions to teacher education, educational research and the development of community partnerships that enhance effective learning and teaching in mathematics education
Summary of contribution and specific context
My academic work centres on inspiring and enabling teachers to find the key that unlocks successful learning for every child they meet. The genesis of this concern for the future lives and learning of children was my early career as a primary school teacher. I quickly learnt that mathematics was a difficult subject for many students, and also an activity that greatly influenced their overall perception of themselves as learners. This insight kindled a growing interest in mathematics education from the perspectives of teaching, learning and the community. Soon I appreciated that enhancing a child’s belief in self as a successful learner requires a whole of community response that is highly dependent on the quality of the student-teacher-parent relationship and the teacher’s professional and pedagogical knowledge. These realisations led to my involvement in educational research, teacher education and purposeful innovation in education: innovation that challenges conventional practice through being responsive to the life experiences of the learner.
Throughout the past ten years my work in teacher education has inspired and assisted Bachelor of Education students and primary school teachers engaged in higher education and professional learning programs I have conducted to become immediately more effective and confident mathematics teachers. My research, scholarship, teaching and professional collaborations have had a significant impact on mathematics education in Australia, and my scholarship in the field of intervention programs for mathematically vulnerable students is acknowledged both nationally and internationally. I have made a further contribution to mathematics education through partnering with community agencies to design innovative and highly effective learning opportunities for Australian Catholic University (ACU) Bachelor of Education students and financially disadvantaged and marginalised children and adults. This leadership was acknowledged in 2008 when I was awarded the ACU Vice-Chancellor’s Staff Award for Outstanding Community Engagement.
Statement addressing criterion 1: Approaches to the support of learning and teaching that influence, motivate and inspire students to learn
Teachers are often caught in the middle between habitually conventional practices and the aspiration to try out innovative strategies for enhancing learning. This makes introducing and sustaining improvements in mathematics learning and teaching difficult. I believe that effective teacher education requires us to challenge learners’ assumptions about teaching and learning so that they may become dissatisfied with their current teaching approach and ultimately search for better methods. The way I achieve this for Bachelor of Education students is to engage them in community settings that challenge their assumptions about how and why children learn and how their relationship with the school and the community affects their learning. The Bachelor of Education students benefit greatly from these activities and their community involvement causes them to reflect deeply on their practice and beliefs about teaching and learning. This has a noticeable impact on their own learning, as evidenced in assessment results and unit evaluations.
To illustrate my approach to teaching and learning, I will describe some of the activities that formed the Ballarat Learning for Life initiative, a highly innovative approach to curriculum design and the teaching of a Mathematics Education elective unit. This initiative utilises the outcomes of groundbreaking research I have undertaken over ten years and involves a partnership between ACU, The Smith Family (TSF) and five school communities. The capabilities and learning of ACU Bachelor of Education students and staff are utilised and extended for the benefit of financially disadvantaged children and their families, but benefits for the students’ professional learning also accrue. In 2008, thirty Bachelor of Education students participating in an elective Mathematics Education unit, Numeracy in the Early Years (EDMA201), assessed thirty children involved in the TSF Learning for Life Program, and then developed Individual Learning Plans (ILPs) for these children based on the outcomes of research in mathematics intervention that I conducted in 2000-2004. The Individual Learning Plans were used by parents, teachers and tutors and provided specific advice and activities that would enhance the children’s mathematical learning. The Bachelor of Education students noted in their response to items in the Unit Evaluation program of ACU Teaching and Learning that learning to write ILPs was most important for their professional learning. One student noted that ‘ILPs are … an important element of teaching. However we had never attempted [writing] one before. I feel more confident going out as a teacher with this practice.’ Another student reported that ‘doing the ILP was very beneficial in helping me to look at and see areas where [children] are struggling.’ These comments highlight the effectiveness of this unit learning experience and demonstrate the impact on student teachers’ learning and confidence as mathematics teachers.
The Bachelor of Education students also prepared and conducted sessions for these children’s parents on strategies for helping their children learn mathematics at home. Actual experience in working with parents is not typical of teacher education courses and the Bachelor of Education students reported that this greatly enhanced their learning and sense of preparedness to enter the teaching profession. These activities were assessed as part of the unit and ACU students performed more highly on these tasks than is generally expected. This can be attributed to the fact that the assessment tasks were having a direct benefit for children and parents as well as for the ACU students. The Bachelor of Education students also established three Maths Clubs for 60 children in a low-socio-economic status area of Ballarat. This involved planning and implementing mathematics activities to build children’s confidence and knowledge. The Bachelor of Education students’ professional learning was enhanced, the children’s learning was improved, and I was able to refine and inform my ongoing research program related to mathematics intervention.
The outcomes of the Ballarat Learning for Life project demonstrate that working in partnership with the community has a positive impact on a regional community and those among us who are disadvantaged and often excluded from educational success. Most importantly, the academic and professional learning of Bachelor of Education students engaging in this unit was very high. This was reflected in the item responses in the University Teaching and Learning Evaluation Program, for example:
- 100% of the Bachelor of Education students agreed or strongly agreed that 'working with agencies and Maths Clubs gave them a broader appreciation of issues associated with learning and teaching mathematics;
- 100% of the Bachelor of Education students agreed or strongly agreed that they had gained skills relevant to their future career as a result of the fieldwork aspect of the unit;
- 96% of the Bachelor of Education students agreed or strongly agreed that the unit increased their confidence in their ability to teach mathematics in primary schools;
- 96% of the Bachelor of Education students agreed or strongly agreed that the lecturer expected them to explore, reflect and critically discuss issues associated with their field of study [mathematics education];
- 96% of the Bachelor of Education students agreed or strongly agreed that the content of the unit challenged them to develop new insights about planning for and teaching mathematics; and
- 100% of the Bachelor of Education students agreed or strongly agreed that student participation was encouraged in the unit.
These evaluations from 2008 are consistent with unit evaluations for every unit I have taught at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels over the past six years. This is highlighted by the following comment received during the independent University evaluation program in 2004. The comment demonstrates the value of school visits for enhancing the practical implications of the theories, concepts and examples explored in campus-based classes, and the effectiveness of the assignments and other learning experiences in which the ACU students engaged:
The visits to the school were so helpful and linked in well with the assignments and tasks. …I feel like I would be able to teach mathematics with confidence and found the lectures and tutes to be most helpful as they gave me ideas and challenges to try and tackle. Ann was the best teacher I have ever had. (EDMA101 Mathematics Education 1 unit evaluation program).
During the Maths Clubs, ACU Bachelor of Education students also gained important professional experience in teaching mathematics, and working with children, parents, teachers and a community agency. This outcome is evident in the following email excerpt from a teacher at St James Primary School who was impressed with the ACU students’ competence in teaching mathematics to underperforming children. The fact that this was noted and reported by the teacher highlights the effectiveness of this activity for the Bachelor of Education students’ learning and confidence:
The Sebastopol Math Club also went very well on Monday night. We had 17 children in total, with 8 very competent and enthusiastic ACU students running the session.... Parent comments so far have been extremely supportive and positive. All are thrilled with the idea of extra support for their child in a fun and enthusiastic environment and hope the club will run for longer than the 5 weeks. The ACU students were great at engaging the children and motivating them to 'have a go'. I was impressed with their approach to the [Maths Club] session.
The positive impact of Maths Clubs on the Bachelor of Education students’ professional learning is demonstrated in the following excerpts from their Action Research Reports:
The [children] thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to have an ACU student to work on their maths skills and the laughter and change of attitudes [are] an attribute of the program. I have personally learnt more about managing a class, time management and engaging students in a topic that they are not interested in. Building strategies that children use everyday in Maths and having [children] ask the ‘why’ questions and ‘can you prove that the answer is correct’ is a skill that many of the children learnt which will encourage them to investigate their answers (Bachelor of Education student A).
The maths club has had an incredible effect on the children in my group. I have been amazed by their enthusiasm for the maths activities, particularly since we have really got to know each other. I have been amazed by the results I am already seeing particularly with William.... Although this improvement may only be in one area of mathematics, the effect that this has had on his self-confidence is amazing. I believe that it is this change in confidence that has and will continue to be the most beneficial outcome of the maths club (Bachelor of Education student B).
Maths Club was a fantastic experience for ACU [maths] buddies and children alike. Many of the children were keen to come back each week, talking about Maths Club at school and wanting to come every night! Parents also talked about noticing the difference in the children’s attitudes and experiences with maths, with many of the children going home each night to practice some of the maths skills they had been working on in Maths Club (Bachelor of Education student C).
These comments demonstrate that the professional learning for the Bachelor of Education students was immense. Clearly the children’s improvement in learning and confidence during the maths clubs also increased the Bachelor of Education students’ confidence in themselves as successful teachers. Further, the excerpts illustrate that the students learnt: the importance of relationships as a basis for successful learning; that building on children’s current knowledge was essential; and that it is necessary for children to ask ‘why’ and to provide proof for their mathematical conjectures. These are impressive outcomes for future teachers.
Embedding learning and teaching activities within the Ballarat Learning for Life Project is one way that I have enabled Bachelor of Education students to enhance their approaches to learning and teaching. This is clearly evident in the unit evaluations and comments related to the Maths Clubs recorded above. My approach also inspired other lecturers at ACU to develop units in association with The Smith Family. This is due to the powerful impact of this approach for both the community and the learning of ACU students and staff. In 2008 my colleague Karen McLean developed the Tell Tales Literacy Program in partnership with The Smith Family as part of an early literacy elective unit, and Beatrice Johnson developed a Nutrition and Health Program for secondary students. Both initiatives were highly beneficial for the ACU students and participating children alike.
The success of Maths Clubs has captured the interest of TSF state and national program managers. Last year I was invited to address both state and national meetings of TSF program managers with a view to considering whether the Ballarat mathematics initiatives may form the basis of a national mathematics initiative for TSF. This year we have jointly begun a research program to explore this further. Of key interest to TSF is the potential of university partnerships for increasing the capacity of TSF Learning for Life Programs. We anticipate that what has been learnt in Ballarat about preparing future teachers to support disadvantaged children effectively to engage successfully in mathematics learning has potential to shape a national approach.
Statement addressing criterion 5: Scholarly activities and service innovations that have enhanced learning and teaching
Throughout the past ten years I have made a significant contribution to enhancing learning and teaching through scholarship and research. This has included acknowledged policy impact of my research activities. For example, the Early Numeracy Interview and associated Growth Points arising from the Early Numeracy Research Project (ENRP) are used internationally (with relevant translations) in Germany, USA, East Timor, Canada and South Africa, and nationally throughout all Government schools in Victoria, all Catholic Schools in the Ballarat and Sale Dioceses, and increasingly in Catholic schools throughout Western Australia. I played a major role in developing these assessment instruments, and in ensuring that Victorian ACU Bachelor of Education students learn to use this assessment approach effectively.
An important outcome of my PhD research and subsequent research and teaching has been the development of a Mathematics Intervention Program for children together with anassociated specialist teacher course. This innovative program Extending Mathematical Understanding (EMU) builds the capacity of school communities for assisting children who are vulnerable in learning mathematics. The EMU Program has been adopted as part of several Australian education system mathematics strategies, and also by individual schools, and has now been completed by some 500 teachers in Victoria and Western Australia. The EMU program also forms the basis of an Australian Government funded program to pilot innovative evidence-based approaches for closing the numeracy gap for low SES and Indigenous students.
The innovative EMU specialist teacher course (at Master of Education level) involves professional learning sessions and field-based learning and research. Course evaluations are very positive and demonstrate the effectiveness of my teaching at the post-graduate level. For example, Master of Education (Mathematics Education) students made the following comments in the unit evaluation program.
‘This unit was easily the best professional development I have ever had. It is a course that is practical…but has an excellent theoretical basis.’ (EDMA613 2005)
‘Ann was a very knowledgeable, accommodating and friendly lecturer who promoted professional discussion and thought provoking questions. Assignments were very practical. What a fabulous unit!!!! Thanks’. (EDMA613 2005)
‘Ann picked up who required extra explanation and tactfully catered for individual needs.’ (EDMA613 2005)
The major contribution I have made through research and scholarship to enhancing learning and teaching is further highlighted by my invitation to participate in state and national committees. For example, I am an invited member of the Victorian Department of Education and Early Childhood Development Mathematics Experts Committee that advises the system on Mathematics Education initiatives.
My contribution is further demonstrated through publications and invitations to present at major international and national conferences. For example, the International Congress of Mathematics Education meets four-yearly and is considered the ‘Olympics’ of Mathematics Education. In 2004 and 2008 I was invited by the organising committee to run a discussion group and a topic study group on current problems and challenges concerning students with special needs and programs and activities for children who have special needs in mathematics. Similarly, the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (IGPME) is the most prestigious annual research conference in Mathematics Education. I was invited to organise a research forum at PME in 2005 in collaboration with Professor Kath Hart, an eminent international Mathematics Educator, on the Progression of Number Concepts in the Primary School. I have also been invited to present several international and national conference keynote addresses on the outcomes of my research and scholarship in Mathematics Education.