Mathematics Professor Dr. Frank Gardella to be Featured on Close Up Radio

SOUTH ORANGE, NJ, UNITED STATES, November 11, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- As the common cliché states, the three R’s in education are reading, writing, and arithmetic. Many will agree that one of the more challenging areas is arithmetic. Our guest, who has been involved in the education of mathematics for decades has made significant contributions in this realm. This is the story of Dr. Frank Gardella.

Dr. Frank Gardella is a Professor in Mathematics Education and Mathematics at Hunter College – CUNY. In addition, he has devoted his career to the improvement of the education of mathematics. He has accomplished this by serving as a teacher, supervisor, an educational consultant, and as an author of several books related to mathematics education. “In my working with teachers as a consultant, I try to become part of the school community to advance the learning of mathematics on the part of children,” summarizes Frank.

“Students come first, mathematics come second,” asserts Frank.

At Hunter College, Frank has a program called the Elementary Mathematics Specialist Program. With this program, elementary teachers study mathematics and how it is effectively taught. “It trains the students who are full-time teachers to be leaders in education at their elementary school,” explains Frank.

Frank identifies one of the main concerns regarding the education of mathematics the top-down approach that is often utilized, especially with national standards and national curriculums. The main problem is that there is no middle management support for elementary teachers. Elementary principals often do not understand the teaching of mathematics. Therefore, there is no connection between the national curriculum and the classroom teacher.

“The teachers do not own the curriculum,” concerns Frank. “It’s just something that they have to do. Because of this, teachers do not have the time to create proper instruction in the classroom. Even if they have the time, they often do not have the knowledge to do it, as they are unsure of what to do.”

“My basic premise is to get the teachers to learn how to teach mathematics and buy into the curriculum to make it theirs,” explains Frank. “It’s also a matter of treating students as people, instead of using a lockstep approach while bringing mathematics into reality – moving everything towards real life experiences and data analysis.”

“Mainly, if you don’t talk to the teachers who are doing the work in the schools, then you have a very good chance of being unsuccessful,” warns Frank.

“That is why I am passionate about what I do,” declares Frank “I want to become a member of the community and to get the teachers to own their curriculum. I am most proud in having the ability to help elementary school teachers understand the mathematics that they are teaching and help them to develop the skills to communicate with their students.”

Frank’s educational background originally started in Fordham University where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics. After, he went to Lehigh University to earn his Master’s degree in Secondary Education and teaching certification. He also taught mathematics in that area for two years at a junior-senior high school. “It was a great experience,” Frank summarizes. After returning to New Jersey, to begin teaching middle school math there, he also went to Brooklyn College to pursue a Master’s degree in Pure Mathematics. Ultimately, he earned his Doctorate in Mathematics Education at Rutgers University. After teaching for ten years in the New Jersey middle school and an additional twenty years as a District Mathematics Supervisor in several New Jersey-based school districts, he took his current position at Hunter College.

His passion for what he does has earned him some notable recognitions. From Hunter College, he earned the Presidential Teaching Award, as well as a similar award from his department for Curriculum and Teaching. He was also inducted into the Supervisor’s Hall of Fame by the New York State Association of Math Supervisors.

As for the future, Frank is looking to publish his newest textbook, titled What We Call Middle School Math. While he explains that this is only a working title at the moment, he ultimately feels that he will use this as the permanent title. The book is intended to explain what is currently involved in the middle school math curriculum.

“All children can learn mathematics,” concludes Frank. “We just have to figure out a way to get them to learn it.”

Close Up Radio will feature Dr. Frank Gardella in an interview with Doug Llewelyn on Tuesday November 12th at 10am Eastern

Listen to the show on BlogTalkRadio

If you have any questions for our guest, please call (347) 996-3389

You may also visit his page on LinkedIn

Lou Ceparano
Close Up Television & Radio
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