A nation-wide program that aims to significantly improve the quality of mathematics teaching in Territory schools will be launched in Darwin today (Friday).
Building the Culture of Evidence-based Practice in Mathematics Education for New Teachers (CEMENT) is a two-year Australian Learning and Teaching Council funded project that aims to provide evidence-based changes to mathematics education teaching across all states and territories.
Charles Darwin University education lecturer Steve Thornton said that during the past decade there had been a growing interest in describing and measuring the kinds of mathematical knowledge needed by teachers.
“The CEMENT initiative is particularly significant in a time when there is increasing scrutiny of teacher knowledge and skills, the development of national standards for the accreditation of teacher education courses, and an ongoing shortage of mathematics teachers,” he said.
“It is a national collaborative project that has been built from the ground up by a group of like-minded researchers and teacher educators who have recognised the need for such a project and involves some of the leading mathematics education researchers and educators in Australia.”
The project team represents seven universities across all states and the Northern Territory, which include diverse institutions delivering a wide variety of teacher education courses.
The Northern Territory launch will be held today Friday, 12 August from 4.30-5.30pm at CDU Casuarina campus, building Blue 5.1.01.