What an inspiring video! It's obvious that the attendees at the filmed workshop are engaged, excited and passionate about their work. What do we know about algebra-taking trends and how can those data be used to influence others about the importance of this educational milestone?

"What to teach and how to teach," but also "WHO will teach?" Thank you for this inspiring project.  I am increasingly concerned that our youngest and most vulnerable students are the ones who are least likely to have knowledgable teachers.  How are you addressing the lack of mathematics understanding among elementary school teachers?  I am intrigued by the local, grow-your-own models that find ways to prime the pump by bringing highly talented to high need schools.  Does anyone know of any projects that are doing that?  Starting with elementary school poses the problem of a long time horizon, but it seems to me to be the only way to expand the pipeline for the long term future.

This is such an important project for the success of our nation.  I have wondered whether one way to make things work better for students who struggle with school would be to teach them like in the 'gifted' classes -- using projects that interest them and connect with their everyday lives, with opportunities to shape the lessons according to their interests.  Is there research that would support or refute using this analogy?

This inspiring video left me hungry to know what happened in that February meeting (described in the summary). We've seen so many collaborative and collective efforts to bring about change - I'm eager to hear the next steps for this group. What happened? What was said? What is happening next?

I echo Jeanne. Further, it sounds like you are working with an inspired group of teachers which is where great things happen for understanding how to prepare future teachers! I am deeply involved in pre-service teacher preparation. I work with high school teachers across all of STEM, but only physics support for elementary teachers right now, although faculty in the WVU Center for Excellence in STEM Education are really starting to gear up our research in elementary math and computer science preparation. We would love to talk to you more as you make "how to teach" more concrete. 

Great to see the Algebra Project and its partners moving forward in this inspiring way. Could you share more on "what and how to ASSESS what is taught and learned in mathematics for students in the bottom quartile" -- what forms or aspects of assessment could contribute to dramatic improvement within your alliance?

Your video is definitely very inspiring and has the potential to impact a large number of students. Does your group consider the role of others in the community in supporting math literacy?

I love the comment from one of the gentlemen in the piece that spoke to the importance of students learning the value in solving a math problem and not simply learning how to solve a math problem. I would be interested to hear what thoughts were voiced during the meeting to help facilitate this change in approach.

Omg.  Outstanding video! This clip brought home the meaning behind teaching and understanding of teaching Algebra.  As a mathematics teacher as one of the gentlemen said "it is not just multiple 4 times 4, it is knowing how and why you get the answer and most of all problem solving"...... Great job

I'm a mathematics education researcher and teacher educator, working to improve mathematics teaching and learning within a larger effort to support public education and to establish a right to education as foundational to a democratic, just society.  I'm interested in Gay Stewart's question about "making 'how to teach' more concrete," in particular in ways that simultaneously engage students in the bottom quartile effectively in learning mathematics, convey the nature of the collective Algebra Project endeavor, and prepare them for earned insurgency.   

The video is most inspiring !I love the perspective that we need to engage the student in a deep meaningful way - so deep in fact we must connect with them so that they are interested in the problem.  Might call this Math+

This is a fabulous video and I am so pleased that it is a part of this showcase. It makes it clear that the program is embedded in a larger movement related to civil rights. I also know that this program has so many aspects to it and has evolved during the years. But I wonder if you can address how you measure your impact in some of the key aspects of the program? What are the key metrics that you use to gauge your progress and success?

Marcus, what a fabulous video you produced! You captured the spirit of the conference as well as the work of folks dedicated to creating excellence and equity in the education of our students, who have been pushed to the margins of an unjust society. Albert Einstein in one of his essays said, "Striving for social justice is the most valuable thing to do in life." I think his comment is particularly cogent in the context of the work of the Algebra Project, The Young People's Project, and The Southern Algebra Project Initiative, as they have for decades integrated social justice work into the work of mathematics. I suspect that most of the people at the conference came not only because of the challenge to replicate models of excellence in mathematical curriculum and pedagogy stolen from our students in the bottom quartile, but also because of their interest in creating models of excellence in a context of justice.

The breadth and depth of the conference stirred my intellect and my soul and my dreams of a real democratic public school system where gifted curriculum and pedagogy is delivered to all of our students, all of the time.

Thank you again, Marcus.  Joannie Wynne

Thanks, Marcus! I am encouraged by the growing Alliance commitment to centering young people in all aspects o the work. I think this connects to Kemi's point above, regarding support from community outside of schools. Young people are often integrated most effectively in community-based organizations--churches, after-school programs, sports leagues, community gardens, or clubs, internships, and so on. It's working from the places of young people's strong bonds with each other and with elders that will change math classrooms into youth-generated learning cultures. 

Thanks again so much for this great work!

The work is so important, and the video inspires me further to work with my students in Brooklyn for greater access.  I am eager to discuss/learn from/participate in organized projects to achieve these goals.  

Marcus captures the content and spirit of the St. Louis gathering.  

Mike

Thanks for putting this video together Marcus, it gave a sense of the spirit of the meeting for those of us who couldn't make it.  

I appreciate Melenik's comment in the video that teaching not about how I learned or even (and this is even more difficult to come to terms with) about what I think my students should know, but about teaching them to become problem solvers and to demand access to mathematics.  

Excellent video. I would suggest that at the end of Bob's last comment on the video that you repeat the two screens "We the people ... Math Literacy for all." And then end with the NSF acknowledgement.

Inspiring!  I'm looking forward to learning more about the strategies and tactics you'll be focusing on.  I think there's a good deal to be done to change teachers' implicit attitudes to raise their expectations and shift their mindsets about what these students can do.  Keep those good tunes from Sweet Honey going....

Hi, All,

I work in a high school and attended the convening in March. One thing that I think is implicit in the video, which is lovely, but was more explicit at the conference was the active role of young people in defining the problem. That's what happens in the spaces that the Algebra Project opens and I think the actions of defining and naming problems by young people is a significant part of why solving problems comes to be valued. This is exciting work and I feel fortunate to be part of the conversation.

Marcus,

Thank you for the extremely creative and significant documentation of work this conference.  Since I was unable to attend, it was so important to see this active formation of our collaborative Alliance.  The video has helped me recruit others who might be interested in participating and building the Alliance.  As we work towards planning the May conference this video provides a great point of departure.  Again, I so appreciate you professional documentation.

Great video, Marcus!

From my view point as a Professor Emeritus of Mathematics, I would say that what is radical about the Algera Project is that it operates with the conviction that all students are capable, through their own experiences, of understanding mathematics and being mathematically literate.

Thank you, Marcus for the inspiring video! I was a participant with the Community Voice working group, and I returned to my community with a renewed commitment, many ideas, and strong support from everyone in the greater Algebra Project community. The Education Justice Task Force of the North Bay Organizing Project, with which I am a participant has stepped out with a focus on encouraging the students in our community take the lead on issues of concern for them, with their parents and NBOP supporting them in every way and all the way. This is the first step in a journey that I believe will continue for the long haul and bear much fruit, particularly in the "literacies" of math and community engagement. This will be what deep democracy looks like!

GREAT JOB, Marcus!!!!

This video shows the power and vision of AP, YPP and SIAP. After the meeting in St. Louis, we have formed in Miami a local alliance between AP/YPP Miami, FIU School of Education and Broward County Public Schools. Lots of work, but meaningful and inspiring work. 

Marcus captured the essence of great minds at work.  In the Division of Education and Counseling at Xavier University in New Orleans, we are tasked with preparing "reflective professionals." St. Louis was a testimony of how the "whole village" can and must shape this process.

It was particularly interesting to see young people demanding what math ought to be taught and how it should be taught in classrooms. Who would have thought young people even cared about that? The young people who are a part of this alliance so far are ready to do the "heavy lifting" in teaching and learning the mathematics that is required for them to obtain entry level knowledge work... also known as the breadwinning professions of the 21st century.  The young people who are here also are looking for other young people who want to join the alliance and do work that is necessary for all of us to succeed.  

Cliff, The Young People's Project

Hello All, 

I really love how the production came out. I look forward to being able to bring what we've done in our time since to the next conference so that we can keep pushing toward a more equitable math education experience. Can't wait to see everyone again and continue the good fight. Also, we can never underestimate the importance of the social and emotional component of the learning process, especially as we seek to build a better future for the students.

Best, 

Menelik

 This video captured the essence of the conference, all the comments of the presenters hit the nail on the head but the comment that really caught my attention was "The value of figuring out a problem" If we can present that to our students in a simple concise manner  then the teaching a concept will be so much simpler because they will know the value of the concept. Looking forward to some more learning.

gonz

As a participant attending the meeting, I was inspired to build bridges on multiple fronts on behalf of young people placed in the bottom quartile--those least well served. When I returned to Pittsburgh, I connected with Pittsburgh Public Schools colleagues to open a conversation about mathematics literacy, YPP, and AP, and I reached out to faculty colleagues at Pitt's Center for Urban Education.  Bob McLaughlin from New Hampshire was also at the meeting, and we began chatting informally about digital equity projects.  Subsequently, we reached out to Meg Peterson, director of the National Writing Project of New Hampshire, and Elyse-Eidman-Aadahl, executive director of the National Writing Project in Berkeley, CA.  NWP agreed to partner with the Collaborative on Digital Equity, and to pilot some kind of digital equity project in New Hampshire.

This is a beautiful video which tells this important story with clarity and style. The St. Louis event was hugely successful from my perspective for creating links among participants.

I feel honored to have taken part in this gathering, and i feel that this video represents the urgency, the passion and the creative work that the event elicited. I am fired up and ready to go!!

The video is exceptionally inspiring.  As a participant in the Community Work Group, I became even more encouraged to return to my community with  renewed efforts to help develop a more effective force of community presence and voice.  I am truly grateful for networking and collaborative opportunities that developed as a result of the February conference.   

Marcus,

I am so impressed with how perfectly you have captured the spirit of our meeting in St. Louis in this video. Congratulations and thanks!  

Bob Moses stressed that the voices and the "heavy lifting" of young people must be front and center in this effort. I was so impressed with the roles that Cliff and the many other young people in the Student Voice Group played in St. Louis as they spoke and presented their ideas with such clarity and passion. Those young people reminded us all of the importance of inviting near-peer mentors into the learning process to help adults "translate" mathematical knowledge into language that their students can understand. They reminded us about the importance of relationships in the learning process, and the key role that social and emotional factors must play in our work if we are to be successful. 

These are the things that the Algebra Project, the Young People's Project, and the Southern Initiative Algebra Project have been doing for decades.  The time is right for all of us to come together in this National Alliance to support young people and work in partnership with them to work for social justice and respectful, effective teaching in support of math literacy, especially for those students most in need of our support. 

As Menelik said, "let's continue the good fight."

Bill

Providing our youth with the mindset, attitudes, skills and tools that make them confident that they can excel in mathematics are critical components to them developing proficiency not only in math but in other subject areas. It is important that our families and communities encourage our children and youth to believe that they can be competent in math! We must also hold schools and institutions accountable for creating affirming, challenging, accessible, and culturally engaging teaching and learning environments that build on the natural mathematical genius that so many of our children have.

Joyce