Math off the Shelf is an innovative four-year project that is designed to develop an infrastructure for math learning utilizing libraries and afterschool programs. Primary partners include the American Library Association, National Institute on Out of School Time (NIOST), Center for the Mathematics Education of Latinos/as, and statewide library agencies. Deliverables include six to ten culturally responsive, bilingual (English and Spanish) interdisciplinary projects and 15-20 short math/library games for children and their families. Each project includes a theme, a mathematical focus, math related books, interdisciplinary activities, take-home materials for families, and outreach and training materials for informal educators. Project materials build on activities developed in the NSF-funded Mixing in the Math project (04-06675) and will be accessible on the Internet. Regional network leaders will be selected from partner sites in AZ, CA, CT, FL, NY, MA, and MO. TERC staff will work with regional network leaders to train children''s librarians in the use of Math off the Shelf materials. Librarians then train afterschool educators to incorporate topics such as number and operation, geometry, algebraic thinking, measurement, and data analysis into activities for K-6 students and their families. A culminating family event enables students to showcase their math knowledge for community members. Dissemination occurs via citywide, regional, and statewide networks. The project will strategically impact the field via the development of culturally-responsive mathematics materials for families. Additionally, the extensive national dissemination plan incorporates a comprehensive evaluation designed to address curriculum development, audience participation, and institutional impact. It is anticipated that this project will reach 900 children''s librarians and afterschool educators and 9,000 children and their families.
Intellectual merit/project goals and approach. Public libraries are a burgeoning venue for elementary grades informal education programs, but such programs rarely include mathematics beyond homework help. Activity choice is often left to staff, and many do not choose to include math. To support integration of more hands-on mathematics, we: Developed materials. We collaborated with several dozen LBIEs (library-based informal educators including children’s librarians and after-school providers holding programs in libraries) in several primarily urban and multi-ethnic regions in the Northeast US to create resources that: (1) are designed to be embedded in existing library-based offerings, rather than to serve as a separate mathematics program; (2) rely on the mathematics of authentic everyday situations (e.g., measuring to create a poster) rather than homework; (3) and can be used without training and are free. We employed an iterative design process with multiple rounds of brainstorming, drafts, trials, and revisions. The process extended for over two years, until a varied bank of well-vetted resources was developed, including dozens each of projects, games, and short activities in English and Spanish. Made the materials available widely. Once finalized, the resources were made available for free access on a public website (http://mixinginmath.terc.edu).[1] For evaluation purposes, we selected eight primarily low-income cities/regions across the US. In each, a library administrator sent out an e-mail encouraging LBIEs to review the website and use any of activities they wished. Use was voluntary; in most cases, administrators had no supervisory role over LBIES and did not track or follow-up on use. Evaluated impact of materials on informal educators’ math-related beliefs, attitudes, and decisions about whether and how to include mathematics in their offerings for children and families. In each of the next three years, Char Associates, the project external evaluator sent out an annual electronic survey to LBIEs in the eight regions. LBIEs were invited via e-mail to complete a survey if they had learned of Math off the Shelf at least four months prior. (Near the start of the project, the evaluator gathered baseline data on a subset of these issues via an electronic survey.) (Response N= 67, baseline; 28 Yr 1; 83, Yr 2; 148 Yr 3; response rate about 50% each year). Findings. Exposure to the resources led LBIEs to make significant changes that sustained throughout the three years, including: Amount of math. At baseline, 10% of LBIEs had ever used math with children; after at least four months exposure to the website resources, most reported regular math offerings (e.g., 74% combined math and ongoing crafts at least monthly, with 28% doing so weekly and 3% daily). Math talk. At baseline, 11% ever discussed the role of math in everyday life with children; after exposure, 59% did so least monthly, 31% weekly, and 9% daily. Math attitudes. 90% of LBIEs reported a more positive math attitude; 90% prioritized including even more math in their programs. Asked why they now chose to offer math, LBIEs cited their newfound math commitment, and interest/demand from children. Despite almost no math at baseline, the vast majority of LBIEs, once exposed to an approach that resonated with their daily activities with children, chose to integrate math regularly. Our research suggests that resources enabling IEs to infuse math into existing programming can lead to a permanent and dramatic increase in math offered to children. Broader impact/significance. Our reach has been considerable, touching formal and informal education venues in every state in the nation. In Year 5 of the project alone, we reached approximately 2,000 library-based informal educators either directly, or indirectly as those with whom they worked provided professional development via workshops and webinars to peers. These informal educators, in turn, engaged about 97,500 children and parents in math activities based on our resources. In addition, our free online resources, promoted on state library, afterschool, and formal education websites across the nation, continue to attract about 6,000 visitors each month. Each informal education environment has its own affordances, constraints, and mathematics opportunities. When informal educators in our studies were offered mathematics resources expressly tailored to their setting, they underwent substantial and lasting changes in their math-related practices, views, and attitudes. They particularly valued that the resources enabled them to integrate mathematics into their existing areas of expertise, drawing upon comfortable and familiar themes, projects, and ways of interacting with children. Our findings suggest that if we are to help informal educators embrace mathematics in their work with children, we need to start with their everyday realities. If we can support them in gaining a vision of mathematics that resonates with their own professional practices, we make it more likely that when mathematics is a choice, they will choose mathematics. [1] As the project has drawn to an end, a subset of the resources remain available online.
