Some possible topics for presentations in Math 903, Fall 2002:
Here are some ideas: Actual topics we will be covering will be discussed at the organizational meeting Wednesday, 9/4/02.
Of course there are lots of journal articles to consider. Some represent more the "education" side of the discussion, others more the "research mathematics" community. An older, still controversial, article is William P. Thurston "On proof and progress in mathematics", Bull. AMS April 1994 161-177. In the same issue is an article by Saunder's Mac Lane, "Responses to theoretical mathematics..." that gives a model for how mathematicians progress, which can be compared with how we teach students.
Here are some books and collected articles to look at:
For those most interested specifically in how we teach college-level math
courses:
Almost any of the articles in pp. 7-82 of Contemporary Issues in Mathematics
Education by Gavosto, Krantz, and McCallum (MSRI publications, Cambridge
University Press). In particular:
 | "Is the Mathematics We Do the Mathematics We Teach?" |
| "The Research Mathematician as Storyteller" |
| "Redesigning the Calculus Sequence at a Research University: Issues, Implementation, and Objectives". |
For those most interested in K-12 education and how we prepare teachers for that arena:
| Same book, the section starting with page 83. |
| The Mathematical Education of Teachers (AMS/CBMS "Issues in Mathematics Education" volume 11): General recommendations on teacher preparation as well as specific programs for elementary, middle school, or high school teachers. |
| Adding It Up: Helping Children Learn Mathematics, from the National Research Council (2001): A great wealth of material: A "state of the nation" summary of school mathematics in the US; A taxonomy and then closer investigation of the material students need to know and teachers need to teach; Recommendations on what and how to teach teachers. |
Issues relating to graduate programs in mathematics and education:
| One Field, Many Paths: U.S. Doctoral Programs in Mathematics Education (AMS/CBMS "Issues in Mathematics Education" volume 9) |
| Changing the Culture: Mathematics Education in the Research Community (AMS/CBMS "Issues in Mathematics Education" volume 5) |
| Towards Excellence: Leading a Doctoral Mathematics Department in the 21st Century (AMS Task Force on Excellence, 1999) |