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CoMath Update for October 7, 2022

Are we back in the swing of things yet? It feels like September flew by and it'll be Thanksgiving before we know it. Keep reading below for more about the recent Launch Years announcement, some CML and CCTM news, and more.

Colorado and the Launch Years Initiative

I shared this via CoMath a few days ago, but if you missed the announcement, Colorado is joining the Launch Years Initiative. You can read the Dana Center's media release here, but if you're wondering what this means for Colorado, I see it like this: (a) we get to expand the work higher education has done with their pathways, which they did with the Dana Center's help starting back in 2014, (b) this gives schools and districts a common project with a common purpose to consider making changes that would be hard to make on their own, and (c) we'll get access to a national network of states and experts so we can make decisions with the best information available.

Of course, none of this takes certain decision-making power away from the legislature, the state board, or your local school board. But there's a growing consensus that high school mathematics isn't meeting the needs of way too many students, and people have questions about what we should be doing better. Joining the Launch Years Initiative will help us answer some of those questions. If you want to get involved (and you should!), then keep reading.

Colorado Math Leaders - November Meeting

CML usually meets on the first Tuesday of each month, but the next meeting has been moved to Tuesday, November 8 due to a Launch Years Initiative kick-off meeting the week prior. As a reminder, our meeting schedule looks like this:

  • 12:00 - 12:30 Lunch and informal conversation
  • 12:30 - 1:30 Launch Years/HS Math Pathways study and work time
  • 1:30 - 2:30 Main meeting time (welcome, share outs, math tasks, reports, etc.)
  • 2:30 - 3:30 Math Interventions study and work time

Everyone is welcome to participate and you only need to join the parts of the meeting that interest you. That said, we know not everyone has a schedule that allows participating at these times, so we'll have meetings and events outside the regular CML schedule, too. To join the CML email group to keep up with the latest news, register and join at https://groups.io/g/comathleaders.

October CoMath Conversation

Colorado educators from around the state were seen in the halls and rooms of the NCSM and NCTM conferences in September. While it was great to see some familiar faces, the critical question is: What did we all learn? What can we share with those who weren't able to attend? Join the conversation on Thursday, October 20, from 4:00-5:00 pm by registering via Zoom. Everyone is welcome to attend, share, and ask questions regardless if you were able to attend the conferences or not.

CCTM Virtual Learning Sessions

The Colorado Council of Teachers of Mathematics has two sessions planned for this month:

PAEMST Nominations

The Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) are the highest awards bestowed by the United States government specifically for K-12 science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and/or computer science teaching. The award recognizes those teachers that have both deep content knowledge of the subjects they teach and the ability to motivate and enable students to be successful in those areas. Recipients of the award receive a certificate signed by the President of the United States, a paid trip to Washington D.C. for recognition and professional development, and a $10,000 award from the National Science Foundation.

The 2022-2023 award cycle will award teachers in Grades 7-12. To nominate a teacher (or to self-nominate), see the eligibility requirements and submit your nomination at the PAEMST website. Nominations are due January 9, 2023, and applications must be completed by February 6, 2023. Applicants are encouraged to attend one of the applicant webinars to get a better understanding of the application and to get helpful tips from PAEMST alumni. Colorado has a proud history of recognizing Colorado math teachers with PAEMST awards, so please think about the excellent 7-12 teachers of math in your area and nominate them!

UNC Mathematics Contest

The University of Northern Colorado is gearing up for its annual mathematics contest. Exam questions will be sent Wednesday, October 26 and the first round of the competition will be held in participants' schools on Wednesday, November 2 and Wednesday, November 9. The final round will be held at UNC on Saturday, February 25, 2023. To learn more and join the contest, visit https://uncmathcontest.wordpress.com/.