Take a quick glance at Dan Meyer’s online resume, and you will see that he is a worker, learner, go-getter, writer and speaker. Study a little bit further and you will find that he is an educator — one who is helping to lead conversations on how mathematics education is being approached in America.
Meyer, along with other experts in the educational field, will be featured speakers for the 2015 Creating High Achievement in Mathematics and Problem Solving (CHAMPS) Mini-Conference scheduled Jan. 9-10 on the campus of Mississippi University for Women.
Meyer, who has appeared on CNN, “Good Morning America,” “Everyday With Rachel Ray” and TED.com, will be the keynote speaker for the opening session Friday, Jan. 9 at 8:30 a.m. in Nissan Auditorium located in Parkinson Hall. This keynote session will be open to the public. Currently, Meyer is studying math education at Stanford University, in addition to speaking internationally and working with textbook publishers, helping them move from education’s print past to its digital future. He was named one of Tech & Learning’s 30 Leaders of the Future and an Apple Distinguished Educator.
Other speakers for the conference include Janet Lewis, a K-12 educational technology and leadership expert who has trained some of the most successful and tech-driven educators in the state, and O’ka Duren, a professor at Mississippi College who has decades of experience in various pedagogical levels.
“With a theme of Spiraling Into Meaningful Math Instruction, the conference will focus on feeding the professional appetites of math educators dedicated to their craft,” said Kenny Langley, CHAMPS project manager. “We are asking teachers to join us in a conversation about how we can better entice students to appreciate mathematics, making them more motivated, capable and productive.”
He added, “This is the conference math teachers will be talking about for the rest of the year and beyond. It’s what CHAMPS is all about: what is broken with math education in America, and how can we be a part of the solution? How do we adjust our methods to engage students so they’ll see the value in applying math in everyday life? I cannot wait to hear from our instructors after the conference. I want to hear Dan Meyer of Stanford University and TED and CNN tell us we have some fine teachers and he can’t wait to come back to Mississippi next year.”
Friday, Jan. 9 will extend beyond the 46 teacher participants to include a total of 120 educators. The conference will continue Jan. 10 with the current teachers, where they will receive more specific training, including sessions where they lead sessions on their own.
“This is going to be a great event and the perfect way for teachers to kickstart their spring semester. It’s going to be intense, challenging, and the energy level is going to be through the roof. I can’t wait,” Langley said.
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The conference is open to current and former CHAMPS teacher participants, educators currently teaching third through eighth grade mathematics and teachers who would like to participate in CHAMPS. Registration closes Wednesday, Dec. 10.
In its 11th year, CHAMPS is an intensive, 10-month professional development program.
“From data coaching, to college readiness, to specific lessons focused on tackling challenging mathemetics concepts, CHAMPS’ expert instructors take time to train teachers in proven techniques that students and teachers will love,” Langley said.
One of those expert instructors will be Debbie Fancher, who has almost 40 years of experience in K-12 classrooms, is a consultant, an adjunct at The W and also taught at the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science.
Fancher will be presenting and providing activities during the breaks to keep the program flowing.
She said last year was the first time for the mini-conference, which exceeded her expectations.
“This year will be even better. This is as good as any professional conference that you can go to. It will be a great experience for the teachers attending.”
Fancher said teachers should go because it will make them feel more enthusiastic and is an opportunity to collaborate with other teachers.
“My goal is that they will go home and say ‘I am going to be a better teacher and I am going to use these ideas.’ It will be fun, enjoyable. They will feel rewarded by being there.”
The conference is free of charge for all teacher participants. Continuing education units will be offered to teachers for a $20 fee. CEUs for the Friday portion of the conference should be between 0.6 and 0.8 units. Credits will be issued through the Professional Learning Office at The W.
Current CHAMPS participants will have CEUs furnished as part of the program, which should be about 1.2 to 1.6 for attending both days.
For more information, visit web3.muw.edu/outreach and click on “Professional Learning” then find CHAMPS, or contact Kenny Langley in The W’s Office of Outreach & Innovation at [email protected] or 662-329-7159.
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