The Program of Mathematics Education has a mission that includes teaching, research, and service consistent with the broader missions of the College of Education and the University in these areas.

First, teacher education in mathematics is a central responsibility of the program. This broad responsibility stresses the identification and development of potential at every level. These levels include undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate study; they include preservice and inservice programs; they include faculty development in teacher education. Two unique roles for teacher education within a research university are the development of model programs and the experimentation that can lead to improvement. These are priority activities for us.

Second, the program mission includes a commitment to the schools who cooperate in service activities. These include courses, inservice degree programs, staff development, advising, curriculum development, research, and evaluation. Collaboration with school personnel to work together for the improvement of mathematics education is an important vehicle for accomplishing outreach commitments.

Third, our mission includes activities for leadership and service at the policy level. This includes roles for the State Department of Education and service to state, regional, national, and international organizations.

Fourth, the program accepts the responsibility to contribute to the advancement of the discipline of mathematics education through leadership, research, exemplary instruction, service, and other scholarly activities. This mission begins with a fundamental commitment of encouraging, supporting, and sustaining individual scholarship. It continues with the necessity of making collective efforts to transcend the sum of individual efforts.

Fifth, our mission includes program development and curriculum development. These activities require the same level of scholarship as other aspects of our mission. Research and evaluation related to program development are part of the mission.

Sixth, research is central to the mission of the program. We must support, maintain, and encourage individual and collective faculty research efforts. Scholarly productivity enhances the knowledge base of the discipline, informs instruction and practice, and creates new opportunities for service.

Seventh, we wish to maintain, continuously monitor, and improve programs for the Bachelor of Science in Education, the Master of Education, the Master of Arts, the Specialist in Education, and the Doctor of Philosophy degrees with a major in mathematics education. These programs should reflect the needs of the field of mathematics education and the best judgment and scholarship available for program elements and program improvement.

Eighth, a responsible and productive doctoral program at the University of Georgia requires research activities at the forefront of the field, recruitment and support of the best available doctoral candidates, and constant monitoring and improvement of the program. The Doctor of Philosophy degree is essential for our continued position among leading doctoral programs in mathematics education.

Finally, mathematics education courses support the program and instruction in degree programs of other departments. The responsibilities for exemplary instruction, program monitoring, and program improvement are an important part of our program mission.

Overall Mission

The Science Education Program is committed to improving science curriculum and instruction at all levels, preschool through college and beyond. The program is determined to expand knowledge of teaching and learning, to disseminate this knowledge and to put existing knowledge to use in various educational settings. The Science Education Program has the same tripartite mission as the University at large: teaching, research and service.

Teaching

The teaching mission of the Program is in graduate and undergraduate degree programs and in other specialized instructional activities. As a program, faculty are committed to a strong undergraduate and graduate program.

A significant component of undergraduate teaching is the education of beginning teachers. Our goals are to provide opportunities for experiences that allow teachers to enter education settings with the highest probability of success and effectiveness and, for the longer term, to provide them with the cognitive tools and attitudes needed to continue their professional development. In graduate instruction we strive to provide practicing professionals opportunities to improve their competence and effectiveness and to develop as educational researchers and as leaders in science education. To accomplish these goals we strive to maintain a solid research base for our graduate and undergraduate curricula.

To implement these goals the Program views as one of its tasks the development and evaluation of model academic programs for teachers and other educators. The product of these efforts are knowledge about the preparation of teachers, teacher educators and other professionals and evaluative information about these models. This makes the education of those in our profession, as we view and practice it, a research endeavor rather than solely the operation of programs.

Research and Development

Contributions to education through research and development are an important part of the Science Education Program mission. We believe that through the research efforts of our faculty and students, we will expand the knowledge base in science teaching and learning.

The development of models for teaching, learning, and curriculum materials is a major commitment. These efforts should include plans to put this knowledge into practice; the translation of research results into effective educational practice and the encouraging of experimentation and innovation must be recognized as essential elements in the improvement of science education.

Service

The Program is strongly committed to service at the local, regional, national, and international levels. We seek out and assume leadership responsibilities at all levels to enhance the status of the education profession.