Caroline Brayer Ebby Lecturer

Education
1988: B.A., English and Mathematics, Amherst College
1997: Ph.D., Educational Leadership, University of Pennsylvania

Professional Biography
Prior to receiving her Ph.D. at the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Ebby spent several years teaching mathematics in public middle schools. In her dissertation research, she investigated how preservice elementary teachers learn to teach mathematics through coursework and fieldwork experiences. In a postdoctoral fellowship at the Center for Performance Assessment at the Educational Testing Service, Dr. Ebby’s work focused on teachers’ learning within the context of scoring high stakes large-scale assessments in Mathematics and English/Language Arts. As a post-doctorate at Penn, she co-directed an NSF-funded project with Janine Remillard involving professional development and research on teacher and student learning in urban elementary schools. At Penn GSE, Dr. Ebby has taught mathematics methods courses in the undergraduate and master’s elementary education programs since 1997. She also teaches continuing education courses for practicing teachers focused on current research, pedagogical approaches, and innovative curriculum activities in mathematics. In addition to her teaching at Penn GSE, she regularly provides professional development and in-class support for the K-5 faculty at the Penn Alexander School. She has also worked with the faculty to create grade-level benchmarks, align the mathematics curriculum with local, state, and national standards, and provide parent workshops.

Research Interests and Current Projects
Dr. Ebby’s research has focused on using social perspectives to understand teacher learning and professional growth and children’s learning of mathematics in classroom settings. She is particularly interested in supporting teacher learning through collaborative analysis of student work and classroom practice. Her current research interests include supporting teacher learning through classroom-based inquiry and increasing access and opportunity to learn mathematics for all children.

Selected Publications
Ebby, C.B. (2004). The powers and pitfalls of algorithmic knowledge: A case study. Journal of Mathematical Behavior, 24 (2005) 73-87

Ebby, C. B. (2000). Learning to teach mathematics differently: The interaction between coursework and fieldwork for preservice elementary teachers. Journal for Mathematics Teacher Education, 3, 69-97.

Courses Taught
EDUC 531: Teaching and Learning Mathematics in Elementary Schools
EDUC 505: Seminar in Mathematics Teacher Research
EDUC 603: Foundations of Computational Fluency
EDUC 589: Improving Mathematics Instruction through Classroom-Based Inquiry
EDUC 568: Advancing the Teaching and Learning of Mathematics Using Investigations