According to its website:

The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics is the public voice of mathematics education, supporting teachers to ensure equitable mathematics learning of the highest quality for all students through vision, leadership, professional development, and research.

There are six principles that guide their work.

The first is the Equity Principle.  It describes the need for equity in math education for all children.  It demands that all children have access to high-quality math education, with high expectations for all learners.  It also requires that accommodations are made for learning differences and that all classrooms and students are given the resources and supports they need to be successful.

I don’t know about you, but I think the Equity Principle should be the guiding principle for all education, not just math.  Imagine a world where the above ideals are played out in every classroom, in every town, in every age group, all over the world.

Yep- the Equity Principle is cool.

Well-prepared teachers must find the balance between math education that is mistakenly delivered by “skill and drill” and that which is solely experienced through play.  It is not enough to present quality materials and manipulatives and hope that children learn math through play alone, nor do we want teachers to create an inappropriate environment where children are expected to learn math like their much older counterparts. Somewhere between these two extremes lies high-quality, appropriate, play-based, teacher-led, intentional and incidental math experiences and education for young children.

The report goes on to say that children will be best served if all early childhood professionals – across diverse settings –  have access to quality professional development.  This includes mentoring and coaching, participation in formal and informal educational opportunities, and opportunities for observation and feedback.  Not mentioned in the report, but I believe to be equally important is that all ECE teachers need more math education themselves.  It has been my experience that weak math skills in adults lead to avoidance of math opportunities in early childhood classrooms and possible incorrect math processes and understandings.

Next week, I will write about Beneke’s recommendations for what quality professional development should look like for ECE professionals in Illinois.

Constance Kamii was born in Switzerland and studied under Jean Piaget himself for many years.  She is currently a professor at the University of Alabama where she continues her work as an early childhood researcher and professor.  She continues to focus her energies on children, math and Piaget.

Over the next several Tuesdays, I am going to introduce this book to you hopefully to spark some discussion about this very specific approach to teaching children “number”.