University of Haifa will spend six months in consultation with teachers and reviewing relevant programs in Israel and abroad in order to build communities of practice
Teachers of the advanced mathematics track are professionally isolated. They rarely participate in professional development workshops, have little interaction between themselves and receive very limited support. They are a group of elite-quality professionals coping with complex challenges, but with no outlet for professional support and knowledge sharing. It is a reasonable assumption that membership in a supportive, professional development community of practice would help them deal with these challenges.
To address this need, the foundation turned to the *RANGE (Research and Advancement of Giftedness and Excellence) Center of the University of Haifa headed by Professor Roza Leikin, in collaboration with the National Center for Mathematics Teachers at the University of Haifa, headed by Dr. Varda Talmon. Leikin, who also serves as chair of the Curriculum Committee for Mathematics at the Ministry of Education, and Talmon have been approved a six-month planning stage, in which to identify the needs and preferences of these teachers, to study similar programs abroad, and learn the model used at the Weizmann Institute with physics teachers.
The planning stage will involve comprehensive consultation with teachers, meetings with relevant programs in Israel and abroad, and reviewing the current portfolio of courses and workshops which are offered to mathematics teachers by universities, colleges, the Ministry of Education and local authorities. The planning stage will conclude with defining goals, methods, partnerships and a work plan which will nurture and support the professional development of mathematics teachers of the advanced track.
* The text above shows the grant as approved by the Foundation’s Board of Directors / 115