Forty-five teachers and principals from across the Wilcannia-Forbes Diocese travelled to Forbes to attend further training in mathematics with Associate Professor, Ann Gervasoni, from Monash University.
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This is the second year of partnership between Monash University and Catholic education.
This program achieved stunning results in its first year with one school being named in the top five per cent of all schools in NSW for mathematical improvement. Overall, the system of school’s results showed substantial improvement.
Dr Gervasoni and her colleague researchers believe that learning and teaching in mathematics involves learning with understanding as opposed to learning by rote.
Due to this belief, Dr Gervasoni and her team developed the program, Extending Mathematical Understanding (EMU), which CEO Assistant Director of Education Services, Mrs Mary-Ellen Dempsey, sees as an innovative way of improving mathematical results in Wilcannia-Forbes schools.
“Dr Gervasoni’s team believes that mathematics must be connected to the everyday lives of students,” Mrs Dempsey said.
Natalie Johnston of Parkes stated, “It has been a fantastic opportunity to look at the data, that we have been able to collect since the introduction of the EMU program, and to see improvement across all our schools results.”
Teachers report that EMU Maths gives them practical strategies, that are really useful in their classrooms and that they are really starting to understand how the development of mathematical understanding happens.
Dr Gervasoni will be visiting Forbes later in the year to continue with the training of teachers in this highly effective approach.
