I have several interests regarding the use of primary sources in teaching mathematics, include the ways in which using primary sources with prospective and practicing teachers contributes to their mathematical knowledge for teaching. I was introduced to using original sources in teaching by Victor Katz, when I was a high school mathematics teacher in Mississippi, and I’ve been hooked ever since. As a mathematics education researcher, my main role in the TRIUMPHS project is to plan for and conduct “evaluation with research” (EwR) on the activities of the grant, and to do so with other PIs, as well as doctoral students in mathematics education at Florida State University. As part of the EwR efforts, we hope to provide formative and summative evaluation of TRIUMPHS, and to investigate several evaluation and research questions, including:
– As a result of engaging with PSPs, what do students report as challenges and benefits of learning from primary sources?
– What do students report regarding changes in attitudes towards mathematics after engaging with a PSP?
– When studying mathematics topics using primary source projects, what is the evidence of students’ progress in “figuring out” (Sfard, 2014, p. 201) the meta-level rules that govern a new mathematical discourse?
– To what extent do students’ (verbal / written / other) actions both during and after engagement with the primary source projects provide evidence of their acceptance of a new discourse?