I firmly believe that learning is active, that students need to engage with ideas together, and that learning to teach is a process of enculturation, gradually becoming a teacher by teaching.
Professor and Graduate Coordinator for Math Ed
My overall goal is to support teachers in teaching mathematics more effectively and to work with them to learn what that means in practice. My research examines the intersections of teacher beliefs and identity with how they support students in making mathematical arguments. My work started at the secondary level, but I have branched out to working with elementary teachers and integrating computer coding into mathematics and science instruction through thinking about arguments within and across disciplines. I enjoy working with teachers at all levels who want to learn and improve their teaching.
I firmly believe that learning is active, that students need to engage with ideas together, and that learning to teach is a process of enculturation, gradually becoming a teacher by teaching. My classes involve a lot of discussion, doing mathematics together, and trying out pedagogical strategies with students in a supportive environment. We investigate ideas about mathematics education together, asking questions of each other and digging into the research to find different ways of thinking about issues in mathematics education.
I hope students learn to think critically about mathematical and pedagogical ideas. I hope they become more reflective about their teaching and that they become more confident in their mathematics practices, particularly in being able to argue mathematically and critique mathematical arguments.
I teach because I love to learn! I enjoy interacting with my students, and I learn from them as we investigate the teaching and learning of mathematics together. I also enjoy watching them learn and grow in their understanding of mathematics, teaching, and learning.
I’m also currently graduate coordinator, so students can contact me if they have questions.
I enjoy traveling to new places, singing in church and community choirs, and I’ve recently picked up quilting as a hobby.
AnnaMarie Conner is a professor of mathematics education at the University of Georgia. Her work research is classroom-based and longitudinal, crossing boundaries between instruction in university courses and classroom teaching in school districts. She investigates teachers’ beliefs and identity construction during teacher education and how teachers learn to support collective argumentation in mathematics classes. These two lines of research come together in findings describing how teachers’ beliefs impact their classroom practice with respect to collective argumentation. Dr. Conner’s work investigates the complex connections between teacher education, teacher characteristics, and teacher practice. She is currently collaborating with secondary mathematics teachers in supporting mathematical arguments as well as investigating how elementary teachers navigate infusing argumentation into integrative STEM instruction.