The PCMI 2006 Program

Designing and Delivering Professional Development

Designing and Delivering Professional Development, one component of the Park City Mathematics Institute (PCMI), consists of a one week summer session experience for those responsible for professional development activities for secondary school mathematics teachers. This would include, among others, mathematicians, university mathematics educators, mathematics supervisors and leaders from the PCMI Professional Development and Outreach groups. This session is connected to and framed around the first week of the three week Secondary School Teachers Program (SSTP).

Partnerships amoung higher education (PDO Directors), curriculum coordinators/supervisors and classroom teachers who are attached to a PDO site have the potential to make a positive impact on student achievement.  The working group will address the fundamental question: What structure will support the professional development of teachers participating in PDO sites so that they have the capacity and motivation to deliver purposeful, professional development to their peers locally, regionally and state wide?  Additional questions that might be considered:  What are effective methods for engaging classroom teachers in professional development that impacts their classroom teaching and learning?  What content would be most helpful in impacting teachers' understanding of mathematics they are asked to teach?  The participants will discuss current models for professional development, and how these might work in a PDO partnership.  Discussions will include involving mathematicians, lessons learned from TIMSS and reflecting on Lesson Study.

Current or potential PDO site directors and all curriculum coordinators/specialists are invited to participate in this new program, which meets during the first week of the PCMI Summer Session, June 25- July 1, 2006.  Participants will attend the morning sessions of the Secondary School Teachers Program.  The first morning session engages participants in doing mathematics collaboratively, and the second morning session is focused on reflecting on practice.  Working groups meet in the afternoon.

All Mathematics Supervisors and Specialists can apply to the program, but we especially invite application forms from supervisors and specialists working near an existing PDO.  Leaders of existing PDOs are strongly urged to attend.  Also, leaders of groups that anticipate applying to be a PDO are encouraged to apply.

PCMI is always interested in forming new Professional Development and Outreach groups and invites teachers or university faculty to consider forming such a group for future involvement in PCMI.  For information on how to apply, such groups should contact Catherine Giesbrecht, PCMI Administrator, at 801-363-1673, or by email:  giesbrec@ias.edu

Professional Development and Outreach groups currently active:
(PDO facilitator(s) in italics):

Boston University, Boston, MA (PROMYS for TEACHERS); Glenn Stevens, ghs@math.bu.edu
Harvey Mudd College, Claremont, CA; Darryl Yong, dyong@hmc.edu
New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM; Susana Salamanca-Riba, ssalaman@nmsu.edu

Ohio State University, Columbus, OH (Ross Summer Mathematics Program for Teachers); Daniel Shapiro, shapiro@math.ohio-state.edu
San Jose State University, San Jose, CA; Joanne Becker, becker@math.sjsu.edu
St. Peter's College, Jersey City, NJ (Northern NJ Professional Development and Outreach Group); Brian Hopkins, bhopkins@spc.edu

Texas State University, San Marcos, TX (McAllen ISD); Max Warshauer, max@txstate.edu
University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH; David Minda, david.minda@math.uc.edu; Charles Groetsch, groetsch@uc.edu
University of Michigan at Dearborn, Dearborn, MI; Roger Verhey, rverhey@umd.umich.edu
University of Texas Pan American, Edinburgh, TX (McAllen ISD); Roger Knobel, knobel@utpa.edu
University of Washington, Seattle, WA (Northwest Mathematics Interaction); James King, king@math.washington.edu
Mathematics Science Partnership
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN; Harvey Keynes, keynes@math.umn.edu

Three sites are part of the SSTP at PCMI through a Math/Science Partnership grant funded by the National Science Foundation.  Teachers at these sites participate in the SSTP and are involved in activities developed by the school and university partners throughout the school year.

Texas State University, San Marcos, TX (McAllen ISD); Max Warshauer, max@txstate.edu

University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH; David Minda, david.minda@math.uc.edu; Charles Groetsch, groetsch@uc.edu

University of Texas Pan American, Edinburgh, TX (McAllen ISD); Miguel Paredes, mpareded@panam.edu

Affiliated Programs

Three PDO groups host their own summer institutes for teachers, concurrently with the PCMI Summer Institute in Park City. Teacher participants from these regions are encouraged to complete the local summer program before applying to the Park City summer program. These groups are:

PROMYS for TEACHERS (at Boston University). This program is in session concurrently with the PCMI Summer Session.
Ross Summer Mathematics Program for Teachers (at the Ohio State University). This program is in session concurrently with the PCMI Summer Session.
Northwest Mathematics Interaction (at the University of Washington). This program is in session in August and throughout the school year.