Introducing the What’s Happening Project Spotlight Series!
Each month we’ll publish a short interview with an Executive Director of a different project across the CSMP Network. These posts will communicate the goals of each project, recent successes, and upcoming events! Have a favorite California Subject Matter Project that you want to see featured? Check back each month to see when they are up.
This Month we are Featuring Kyndall Brown, the Executive Director of the California Mathematics Project. Read what’s happening with the CMP below.
Introduction:
My name is Kyndall Brown. I developed a love of mathematics early in life. I think it was the patterns and rules that were part of mathematics that attracted me to the field. As I grew up, my friends always remarked at how good I was at explaining things to them, and suggested I would make a good teacher. I graduated from college with a degree in mathematics. It wasn’t a plan, but I ended up taking the CBEST exam to get an emergency credential. I started teaching without having had a single theory or methods course. I attended my first CMP institute the summer after my first year teaching. Nine years later, I attended a 3-week UCLA Mathematics Project leadership institute that changed my life. I ended up becoming a UCLAMP teacher leader. In 1999, I started working full time for UCLAMP as a co-director. In 2005, I became the director of UCLAMP. In 2013, I became the executive director of CMP.
Current Context of K-12 Mathematic Education in California:
The state is still trying to rebound from the impact of the pandemic on student’s mathematics achievement. The most recent data from CDE shows a steady decline in the number of students meeting or exceeding the grade-level standards in mathematics. Another priority in the state is the recent approval of the California Mathematics Framework (CMF). Mathematics education researchers in the state will be focusing professional development and support for teachers in California to implement the CMF.
On the Impact of the CMP on Math Education in California:
The 19 sites of the CMP are able to provide support for schools in their regions to provide research-based, standards-aligned professional development programs. This work takes the form of summer, content-based institutes, and district and school-based fee-for-service professional learning and classroom support. Regional sites also write grants to partner with districts and schools. Many CMP teacher leaders go on to become leaders in their regions in a number of ways, including department chairs, coaches/TOSA’s, district and school administrators, county office mathematics coordinators.
On Exciting Recent Projects:
I have been very excited about our Early Childhood Education Initiative. CMP used learning acceleration funds to create a professional development initiative to support Pre-K teachers to teach mathematics effectively. Many of the resources for the program come from the new research on Counting Collections and Choral Counting as a strategy to develop children’s mathematical thinking.
On Exciting Upcoming Projects:
I am excited about rolling out the new California Mathematics Framework. This will be a multi-year effort that will bring together mathematics educators and organizations across the state. The recent funding from the California Mathematics Science Computer Science grant (CAL-MSCS) will provide resources for each county office in the state to develop a professional development plan that will likely include framework implementation.
How to Keep in Touch with the CMP!:
CMPSO website-www.cmpso.org
CMP Facebook Page-
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100057311446195
Photo 1-CANMEE Lesson Study Annual Convening April 29, 2023
Photo 2-CMP 40th Anniversary Celebration 9-23-22