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This story was printed from Minnesota River Valley Education Office.
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Dr. Takahashi instructing teachers.

MATH MASTER RETURNS TO THE MRVED

October 07, 2008

Dr. Akihiko Takahashi, an Assistant Professor in Elementary Math at DePaul University in Chicago, returned to the MRVED on October 2 & 3. The MRVED has a close working relationship with Dr. Takahashi as he has presented many workshops over the last several years to MRVED teachers. He is well known for his work with Lesson Study, a Japanese method of instruction. This visit he provided instruction on teaching problem solving to twenty-five teachers grades K-12. He is a firm believer that concrete manipulatives assist students in problem solving, particularly open-ended problems or story problems. During his workshops, the teachers worked with geoboards and other manipulatives. The training was very well received and Dr. Takahashi received high marks.

Teachers working with manipulatives.

Dr. Takahashi believes that teachers need strong support to provide students with good instruction. This support needs to be more than just teaching materials; they need hands on training so they have the opportunity and time to work with the different training materials and manipulatives. This training provides the teachers with a deeper understanding of mathematics which will hopefully translate into improved instruction.

The MRVED values our strong working relationship with Dr. Takahashi and will be bringing him back on January 19, 2009 for more high quality professional development.

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