2022 Susan Gay Travel Scholarship Recipient
Johana Thomas Zapata
Washington State University
Biography
Johana is a Honduran educator and Fulbright grantee entering her second year as a full-time student in the Mathematics and Science doctorate program at Washington State University. She is currently working on a research project with Dr. Amy Roth McDuffie analyzing district-wide lesson study data to support an elementary mathematics curriculum adoption. During the AMTE conference, along with her research team, Johana will present findings of how district-wide lesson study supported teachers in developing their knowledge and practices for teaching and learning mathematics, focusing on improving student agency, identity, and productive struggle in learning mathematics.
Prior to beginning her doctoral studies, Johana pursued a B.Ed in Mathematics at the National Teaching University in Honduras and continued her graduate studies at University College Cork, Ireland, with a Master in applied mathematics. She has worked as a bilingual (English/Spanish) mathematics teacher at K-12 and college levels. Johana has decided to become a mathematics teacher educator to create and improve new ideas for teaching and learning mathematics. Her research interests currently focus on investigating model-eliciting activities (MEAs) as a framework for STEM integration in elementary mathematics classrooms and describing how this framework supports teachers in enacting equitable practices while introducing students to STEM and modeling activities.