Mathematics Education (Ph.D. in in Curriculum and Instruction)

Campus: Blacksburg Campus

Instructions: Residential/On Campus

We focus on original research, preparing students for research and teaching in a context that is rigorous, collegial, and cooperative.

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90+ credit hours

funding through assistantships

100% faculty commitment

Intensive research opportunities

Our Mathematics Education program

The Mathematics Education program at Virginia Tech unites faculty and students from the Mathematics Department and School of Education. Our research focuses on understanding how students learn mathematics, which informs curriculum design, teaching practices, and assessment instruments. We seek to establish equitable learning environments that take advantage of current research and technology.

Why Study Mathematics Education Here?

Our math education faculty focus on preparing highly-qualified math teachers while engaging in innovative research on teaching and learning. With some members residing in the Department of Teaching & Learning and others in the Math Department, our faculty take advantage of opportunities to collaborate with additional Virginia Tech faculty members across the School of Education and the College of Science.

What You’ll Study

The Mathematics Education Doctoral Program in the School of Education focuses on original research, preparing students for research and teaching in a context that is rigorous, collegial, and cooperative.

Concentration (24+ credit hours)

Required Mathematics Education courses:

Critical Analysis of Mathematics Education Research (EDCI 5784)

Modeling Mathematical Knowledge & Learning (MATH 5624)

Advanced Topics in Mathematics Education (EDCI 5784)

Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education (MATH 5634)

Additional courses in Teaching and Learning (e.g., EDCI) will be decided upon in consultation with your advisor. Past favorites have been:

Exploring Teacher Education Curriculum (EDCI 5784)

STEM Education Foundations (EDCI 5804)

STEM Education Pedagogy (EDCI 5814)

STEM Education Trends & Issues (EDCI 5824)

Foundations of Education (12+ credit hours)

Required courses:

Constructivism and Education (EDEP 6224)

Learning & Cognition (EDEP 5114)

Additional courses in Foundations (e.g., EDEP) will be decided upon in consultation with your advisor. Past favorites have been:

Schooling in American Society (EDCI 5104)

The Analysis of Educational Concepts (EDCI 6024)

Motivation and Cognition (EDEP 6444)

Cognitive Processes (EDEP 6114)

Research Methods (18+ credit hours)

Required courses:

Qualitative Methods in Educational Research I & II (EDRE 6504, 6524)

Quantitative Research Methods in Education I & II (EDRE 6605, 6606)

Additional courses in Educational Research (e.g., EDRE) will be decided upon in consultation with your advisor. Past favorites have been:

Foundations of Educational Research and Evaluation (EDRE 5404)

Introduction to Mixed Methods (EDRE 5674)

Advanced Statistics for Education (EDRE 6634/STAT 6634)

Hierarchical Linear Modeling (EDRE 6694)

Multivariate Statistics for Applications to Educational Problems (EDRE 6654)

Mathematical Content Courses (6+ credit hours)

Courses in Mathematics (MATH) or Statistics (STAT) will be decided upon in consultation with your advisor. Past favorites have been:

Mathematics for Secondary Teachers I (MATH 4625)

Mathematics for Secondary Teachers II (MATH 4626)

Secondary School Mathematics With Technology (MATH 4644)

Research & Dissertation (EDCI 7994, 30+ hours)

Career and Professional Development

PhD program is primarily designed to prepare researchers and higher education faculty. The Possible career paths could be but not limited to faculty jobs, researcher, mathematician etc.

Blacksburg Campus

This degree program is offered at the Blacksburg campus. The Blacksburg campus offers students the full services of the university, including an extensive library, technology support, and the Graduate Life Center.

Faculty Research Interests

Dr. Jay Wilkins

Professor, School of Education

Understanding and measuring quantitative literacy,

Children's development of fraction concepts,

Mathematical beliefs and attitudes

Teaching and learning of probability and statistics

Dr. Megan Wawro

Associate Professor, Mathematics

Students' understanding of linear algebra.

Development of mathematical meaning over time (for both individual students and the classroom as a collective community) and explores ways to coordinate the analyses at the individual and collective levels.

Students’ development of formal ways of reasoning about mathematical concepts via authentic participation in discipline-specific mathematical activities.

Dr. Catherine (Katy) Ulrich

Assistant Professor, School of Education

Building models of how middle school students construct their integer (signed number) concepts.

Incorporating results from learning research into mathematics education policy and instruction.

Dr. Anderson Norton

Professor, Mathematics

Students' mathematical development using teaching experiments, along with quantitative methods.

Students' mathematical conjectures formed in the context of learning fractions, algebra, and geometry.

Dr. Bettibel Carson Kreye

Clinical Associate Professor, School of Education

The education and training of Mathematics Specialists.

Providing professional development for inservice elementary, middle, and high school mathematics teachers.

The improvement of student learning through teacher education in best instructional strategies.

Dr. Estrella Johnson

Assistant Professor, Mathematics

Investigating classroom instructional practices

Developing and researching the impacts of instructional support

Identifying factors and influences that shape pedagogical practice.

Susan Hagen

Instructor, Mathematics

Nate Gildersleeve

Instructor, Mathematics

Mathematics Education Research Highlights

Wilkins, J. L. M. (in press). An assessment of the quantitative literacy of undergraduate students. Journal of Experimental Education.

Wilkins, J. L. M. (2015). Standards-based mathematics curricula and the promotion of quantitative literacy in elementary school. International Journal of STEM Education, 2:19.

Kreye, B., & Tilley-Lubbs, G. A. (2014) Collaboration for authentic preservice teacher experiences: Mathematics and English as a second language. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, Vol. 25, No. 3.

Wilkins, J. L. M., Norton, A. & Boyce, S. J. (2013). Validating a written instrument for assessing students' fractions schemes and operations. The Mathematics Educator, 22(2), 31-54.

Norton, A., & Wilkins, J. L. M. (2013). Supporting students' constructions of the splitting operation. Cognition and Instruction, 31(1), 2-28.

Students interested in applying to the Mathematics Education (Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction) should contact the program leader, Dr. Jay Wilkins, by email at wilkins@vt.edu.

Visit our office at 300C War Memorial Hall (0313), 370 Drillfield Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061

Domestic Application

*Fall: August 1

International Application

*Fall: April 1

*Deadline for early decision admission with full funding consideration for Fall: February 1.

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CONTACT US

Jay Wilkins
Program Leader
300C War Memorial Hall
Blacksburg, VA 24061
(540) 231-8326
wilkins@vt.edu

School of Education

226 War Memorial Hall (0313)

370 Drillfield Drive

Blacksburg, VA 24061

Mathematics Education (Ph.D. in in Curriculum and Instruction)

What You’ll Study

Career and Professional Development

Blacksburg Campus

Everything you need to know about doctoral studies

CONTACT US

Mathematics Education

(Ph.D. in in Curriculum and Instruction)