Jeffrey C. Shih

Longitudinally Investigating the Impact of Curricula and Classroom Emphases on the Algebra Learning of Students of Different Ethnicities

This paper explores how curriculum and classroom conceptual and procedural emphases affect the learning of algebra for students of color. Using data from a longitudinal study of the Connected Mathematics Program (CMP), we apply cross-sectional HLM to lend explanatory power to the longitudinal analysis afforded by growth curve modeling that we have reported elsewhere. Overall, we find that the achievement gaps tend to decrease over the course of the middle grades. However, differences in open-ended problem solving and equation-solving performance persist for African-American students. Classroom conceptual and procedural emphases also appear to differentially influence the performance of Hispanic and African-American students, depending on the aspect of algebra learning that is being measured.

Addressing Measurement Issues in Two Large-Scale Mathematics Classroom Observation Protocols

In large-scale studies of mathematics achievement, many important variables are at the classroom level and therefore require the collection of classroom observation data. However, in these studies, collecting observation data is expensive, and collecting numerous observations can be cost prohibitive. In addition to these practical considerations, there are methodological and conceptual considerations to measuring instruction. This chapter raises several of these issues around measuring mathematics classroom instruction by using empirical data from two prominent observational protocols.

Examining the career paths of doctorates in mathematics education working in institutions of higher education

ABSTRACT This article focuses on the career paths in higher education taken by 351 doctoral graduates in mathematics education and provides insight into their career path and their resulting workload. Because some of the sample is drawn from graduates of programs with NSF funding related to doctoral preparation, it represents a best-case scenario of doctoral preparation experiences. Notable findings are that about one-half of the doctoral graduates in mathematics education are employed in mathematics departments, the majority (60%) of doctoral graduates remain in their initial faculty position upon completing their doctorate, and that workloads differ substantially across doctorate-granting and non-doctorate-granting institutions.

Issues of validity in reporting the number of doctorates in mathematics education

ABSTRACT The Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED) has historically been used to report the number of new doctorates entering over 100 different academic disciplines annually, including the field of mathematics education. In this article, we examine the validity of the use of this measure for this purpose by analyzing data from 23 institutions that grant mathematics education doctoral degrees and a specific university. Results showed that the SED underestimated the number of doctoral graduates by 5–15%, raising concerns about the use of the SED for this purpose.

A profile of mathematics education doctoral graduates’ background and preparation in the United States

ABSTRACT This landmark study of doctoral graduates in mathematics education provides benchmark data that we hope will be useful to the mathematics education community. Five hundred three doctoral graduates from twenty-three institutions participated in the study with a response rate of over 90 percent. This article focuses on doctoral graduate satisfaction with their doctoral preparation, the influence of full-time doctoral status, mathematics and mathematics education course requirements, and preparation to teach methods courses.