With the school year winding down and educators gearing up for a well-deserved break, the summer months offer an invaluable opportunity for growth, reflection, and honing of teaching practices.
To help guide your professional development, we’ve assembled a collection of useful resources—everything from teacher pd grants to conferences and webinars—tailored to empower math educators at any career stage.
Whether you aim to fine-tune pedagogical strategies, deepen content expertise, or stay current with math education trends, our list of Summer Professional Development Resources for Math Educators is sure to support your PD goals. Reading poolside is optional. 🙂
Professional Development Resources:
PD Grants
- The NEA Foundation educator grants and fellowships
- Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship Program
- Fund for Teachers grants
- McCarthey Dressman Education Foundation teacher development grants
Online
- Data inquiry cycle questions to guide your professional journey
- National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Professional Development Guides (that include goals, activities and questions)*need to be a member
Conferences
- Florida Council of Teachers of Mathematics
Where: Orlando, Florida
When: June 20-22, 2024 - ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) NTN will be attending
Where: Denver, Colorado
When: June 23-26, 2024 - The 15th International Congress on Mathematical Education
Where: Sydney, Australia
When: July 7-14, 2024 - Florida Council of Teachers of Mathematics
Where: Orlando, Florida
When: June 20-22, 2024 - Standards Institute (UnboundEd) NTN will be attending
Where: Washington D.C.
When: July 15-18, 2024 - MAA MathFest 2024 (Mathematical Association of America)
Where: Indianapolis, Indiana
When: August 7-10, 2024
Webinars
- “Ways to Use Math Data to Personalize the Learning Experience”
- “Identify Student’s Common Math Misconceptions”
See more NTN webinars here: https://ntnmath.com/category/webinar
Summer Math Trainings
It has been argued that professional development, with the appropriate follow-up, is one of the best ways to build capacity in educators (Datnow et al. 2020). A recent study found that given effective implementation of new skills and knowledge, a single in-service training session had a potential correlation to an increase in student achievement (Filderman et al., 2020).
Research has shown that one of the many barriers teachers face when effectively implementing knowledge and skills gained in professional development is time constraints. It takes time for teachers to determine necessary adjustments and implement changes to impact achievement. Between mandated pacing, classroom management, and other professional obligations, many teachers report it is often challenging to implement significant changes based on new learning throughout the school year (Buczynski & Hansen, 2010).
One solution to mitigate this challenge is providing ongoing professional development through the summer to allow teachers time to plan for successful implementation of new knowledge, skills, and strategies.
The KEY ingredients for providing effective math professional development in the summer include:
- Sessions being content and grade-specific
- Topics being based on data and what is being taught early on according to pacing
- Engaging activities that align with state standards
- Inquiry-based problems from the district/school’s approved curriculum
- Expert facilitators that are well-versed in adult education and the content
- Advanced notice to educators with clear instructions for:
- Registration
- Compensation
- Location
- Dates
- Intended audience
- Intended Outcomes
Professional development enables math educators to stay current with educational trends, enhance teaching skills, deepen content knowledge, meet professional requirements, network, experience personal and professional growth, and improve student outcomes. At NTN, Professional development is the foundation for everything we do. Our team of coaches love working with our network of math educators in a collaborative fashion that provides support and enrichment..
One of NTN’s Seven KEYS to Professional Development is Training! Currently, NTN has been selected and contracted to develop and facilitate over 50 summer math trainings this summer. Each session is customized to meet the needs of each district’s request. Click the link below to schedule a time to learn more about how we can work together and support your summer and school-year professional development needs.