Candidate for Treasurer:
Anita Wager
University of Wisconsin-Madison,
Madison, Wisconsin
Professional Work Experiences
Anita received her doctorate in curriculum and instruction with a focus on mathematics education from University of Wisconsin-Madison. She currently teaches mathematics methods courses for pre- and in-service early childhood and elementary teachers and graduate courses in mathematics education and social justice. Prior to receiving her doctorate, she worked in the financial services industry for 15 years and taught 5th grade for five years.
Anita’s research focuses on teacher education that supports culturally relevant and socially just mathematics teaching in early childhood and elementary school. She is particularly interested in practices that draw on children’s mathematical thinking, mathematics (and other) experiences in homes and communities, and the mathematics children engage with in play. In her work with teachers to explore mathematics learning in play-based classrooms Anita examines how teachers can plan activities, prepare the environment, and notice mathematical practices children engage with in play. In collaboration with Dr. Beth Graue and Dr. Tom Carpenter, she is in the 5th year of an NSF funded project to study a professional development program for public preK teachers that weaves together developmentally and culturally responsive early mathematics and funds of knowledge. With colleagues from other institutions Anita is working on another NSF funded project to study students’ access to and agency in mathematics learning.
Service to AMTE and other professional organizations:
Anita has served as member and co-chair of the AMTE Equity Task Force and as member of the AMTE STaR committee. She is currently outgoing treasurer of the SIG-RME, a strand leader for PME-NA, and has co-facilitated a PME-NA working group, Addressing Equity and Diversity Issues in Mathematics Education, for the past five years. She is a regular speaker at the local district’s professional development series and provides professional development for other local and state organizations.
Vision for and commitment to AMTE:
I see three important goals for AMTE to take on over the next several years: (1) making equity explicit in all our work; (2) breaking down silos between foci so that we as a field see our work with children, teachers, and policy in all content areas of mathematics as integrated - I have some ideas for this that also attend to #1; and (3) making our research and practice more visible in policy and media. Each of these is equally critical in an era of standards-driven assessment and political attacks on public education.