Programs for Teachers

The School of Mathematics Center for Educational Programs offers a varity of programs in order to support both new and experienced teachers.

Summer 2012 Course - Expanding Your Mathematical Horizons

The Mathematics Center for for Educational Programs (MathCEP) at the University of Minnesota has a long history of professional development for elementary and middle school teachers, with the goal of increasing your mathematical understanding to help you be a more eﬀective mathematics teacher. This year we are pleased to oﬀer a professional development course for teachers in grades 3-8 called Expanding Your Mathematical Horizons; space permitting, we will also accept applications from teachers of other grades. The heart of the course is an intensive one-week summer workshop, followed by other events during the 2012-13 academic year.

This year’s program will not focus on specific classroom practices or a particular part of the curriculum, but rather aim to give you broad exposure to a wide variety of mathematical topics, leaving you better informed and better equipped to explain to both students and parents why mathematics is such an important part of our education.

MathCEP instructors will lead you through a variety of enrichment topics, at a grade-level appropriate level, providing you with resources to use with your own students. Topics may include, but are not limited to:

How do cell phones deal with static in a transmission to keep your conversation crystal clear?
Why is our standard method of running elections mathematically defective?
What new ideas come from looking carefully at numbers and their operations?
What does it mean to say there are infinitely many of something? How can we “count” them?
How do the maps in our classrooms distort our view of the world?
How does Google Maps determine a route from Point A to Point B?

There is no cost to participate in the program, but a $50 deposit check is required with your application; if you attend and complete the summer course this check will be returned to you. (Otherwise it will be deposited.) Parking vouchers, snacks and lunch will be provided each day.

Participants may earn two graduate level credits (Math 5990 – Topics in Mathematics) at the University of Minnesota by paying tuition and fees at a highly reduced rate. Alternatively, teachers may earn the credits at no cost if they complete the summer course and teach in two Saturday morning MathCEP enrichment events during the 2012-13 school year; topics for those enrichment events will be covered during the summer workshop. Contact us for further information.

To Apply: fill out the online application and send your $50 deposit check, made out to University of Minnesota to MathCEP Teacher Course (Attn: Ted Huseby), Vincent Hall 4, 206 Church St SE, Minneapolis MN 55455. You will be notified of your status by April 18th, 2012 or, if you apply after that date, as soon as possible.