This project develops, pilots, analyzes, and refines a set of tasks and activities that make up the first semester of a two semester calculus sequence designed specifically for elementary education majors and replaces the current elementary mathematics undergraduate courses. Calculus is foundational not only to mathematics, but to other STEM areas as well, so learning calculus is important for this new brand of STEM-focused elementary teachers. This Calculus for Elementary Majors serves the nation's need to educate elementary teachers who know STEM. Future elementary teachers also need a profound understanding of elementary mathematics and this project makes necessary and important connections between calculus and elementary school mathematics. To do this, educators in the mathematics department, mathematics education department, and elementary education department at NC State developed a set of materials that serve as the basis for this innovative calculus course and a textbook for elementary teachers. In the process of conducting this development, field testing of the materials and assessment of the learning of the preservice teachers determined the validity of this intriguing hypothesis.
is a new two semester calculus course for future elementary teachers developed at North Carolina State University. During the course of the project, we developed, piloted, analyzed, and refined a set of tasks that a part of the first semester of a two semester calculus sequence designed specifically for elementary prospective teachers (EPTs). The second semester of the sequence was developed as well without funding. The course sequence is innovative in that it integrates important calculus concepts such as change and accumulation with specialized mathematical knowledge that has been identified as imperative for practicing elementary mathematics teachers. The creation of the innovative CELTIC learning material was based on four primary foundations: studying calculus concepts from a function and modeling perspective; learning targeted topics of the mathematics needed to teach elementary school through explicit connections to calculus concepts; using technological tools to foster understanding of mathematical concepts; and exploring applications to various STEM areas. This new CELTIC course based on these important foundations provides a sequence of instructional tasks through which EPTs learn the mathematics needed to be STEM-focused elementary teachers. This has the potential to transform elementary teachers’ preservice education and future elementary mathematics instruction across the country. Intellectual Merit On one hand, current content courses for elementary preservice teachers do not take them far enough in their college-level mathematical journey; on the other hand, current calculus courses do not provide these same teachers with the profound understanding of fundamental mathematics which they need to teach high quality mathematics to K-5 children. The learning materials created through this project address this problem and advance knowledge about the preparation of STEM-focused elementary teachers by teaching calculus to elementary teachers; that is, it helps to educate elementary teachers who understand calculus concepts and can integrate the teaching of STEM ideas into the elementary school curriculum. We have found that elementary preservice teachers can succeed in and benefit from a calculus course designed to attend to both important ideas about calculus and to the needs of elementary teachers. This calculus course provides elementary teachers with an important perspective on STEM disciplines.is geared to their needs (focusing on conceptual understanding, modeling, and mathematics knowledge for teaching) so they can better teach elementary school mathematics. Although we have not been able to investigate this due to the short time frame, we hope to pursue this hypothesis in the future. The creation of the CELTIC course is based on a strongly built partnership between the Department of Mathematics, Science, and Technology, Education, the Department of Mathematics, and the Department of Elementary Education at North Carolina State University (NCSU), which are combining expertise to work on the enduring problem of preparing elementary teachers with STEM knowledge. It builds community among mathematicians and mathematics educators who can, together, create learning materials that are both mathematically rigorous and relevant for the mathematics education of teachers. Broader Impacts The findings and the instructional materials produced in this project have the potential to serve the nation’s need to educate a new generation of STEM-focused elementary teachers. Consequently, they can impact and transform STEM elementary education — from teacher preparation to student achievement in mathematics. Further, a more advanced and sophisticated mathematics course for elementary preservice teachers that is developed around ideas of calculus can attract more and better-prepared candidates for STEM elementary education programs. The idea of STEM-focused elementary teachers has the potential to appeal to students with strong STEM background who may find that elementary education can be as challenging and exciting a field of work as any other STEM discipline. We are not aware of a university-level course that offers elementary preservice teachers mathematics content that is both advanced and focused on the mathematics they need to become excellent elementary mathematics teachers. The proposed CELTIC course has the potential to serve as a model for other institutions and transform the way in which elementary teachers are prepared.
