The August Numeracy webinar will look at Training Teachers of Young Children in Mathematics: The Whole Teacher Approach. The speaker is Jennifer McCray, Assistant Research Scientist and Project Director of the Early Math Collaborative at Erikson Institute, a graduate school in child development.

Teaching is incredibly difficult work, but training teachers and expecting them to adjust their teaching practice is even more challenging. In mathematics, many teachers at primary school level lack both confidence and knowledge, making the goal of excellence in early math teaching elusive.

At the Erikson Institute in Chicago, the Whole Teacher Approach is used as a conceptual framework to guide the design of professional development (PD) efforts. This webinar will familiarize participants with the basic elements of this approach and show how it has been used at Erikson to inform their work with teachers. Participants will:

• understand the idea behind the Whole Teacher Approach.
• hear about a professional development program that has used the approach successfully.
• have an opportunity to ask questions relevant to their own contexts.

The following questions will be addressed during the webinar:

• What are commonly effective interventions in early math professional development? What modalities, durations, and frequencies make sense?
• What can be done to help allay teachers’ anxieties about math?
• How should teachers be selected for professional development, and how can trainers handle situations with teachers who are not interested?
• What are some mechanisms of professional development that are important for under-resourced schools to consider?
• What materials are most important for each classroom to have?

Jennifer McCray is an expert on early childhood mathematics and professional development for early childhood teachers. Educated at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Erikson Institute, and Loyola University Chicago, her dissertation on teachers’ understanding of early childhood mathematics content won two U.S. national awards.  She has presented on her work in both Shanghai and Berlin.

Please access the webinar by following the instructions below:

In advance to the webinar

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If you want to call in by Skype please see instructions below in advance to the webinar.

Webinar access

Please access the webinar by following the instructions below:

Login Information
Topic: Numeracy Community of Practice Monthly Webinar
Date: Wednesday, August 6, 2014
Time: 10:00 am, Eastern Daylight Time (New York, GMT-04:00)
Meeting Number: 825 077 588
Meeting Password: (This meeting does not require a password.)

To start or join the online meeting, go to https://nethope.webex.com/nethope/j.php?ED=213343617&UID=496725172&RT=MiMxMQ%3D%3D

Audio access:
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For assistance or if you have any problems with the login please send an e-mail to: numeracy@giz.de

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https://nethope.webex.com/nethope/j.php?MTID=mcc49252f7e019354e1fd6522ab2e38e8

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