Teaching

My teaching and practitioner work primarily includes courses/workshops situated around mathematics content and pedagogy/methods specifically designed for K-8 (inservice and preservice) teachers. During teaching, I purposely put my teacher-learners in small groups, and I carefully monitor their learning and progress. Growing up in the Soviet Union, I experienced Vygotskian constructivism as a learner. In school, I worked together with other students in small groups, tackled problems and struggled in the process, and I tried to help and support my peers as much as possible. This process was often followed by students offering suggestions and solutions to the teacher, who carefully monitored and assessed their thinking/reasoning and planned the next steps for instruction. Today, I take these experiences with me into my own classrooms. More specifically, in Vygotskian constructivism (i.e. social constructivism), the learning is purposely situated within the collective inquiry, driven by the use of problem-solving, tools, and collaboration between peers and experienced others to help advance each student’s learning and potential beyond his/her immediate capacity (i.e. zone of proximal development). Thus, tools, collaboration, rich mathematical tasks, curiosity and questions, and effective learning communities define the critical aspects of my classroom and teaching.

Courses Taught