Amy Parks

Professional Title
Assistant Professor
Organization/Institution
About Me (Bio)
Amy Noelle Parks is an associate professor in the Department of Teacher Education at Michigan State University. Prior to that she was an assistant professor of early childhood education at the University of Georgia. Her work focuses on equity issues in mathematics education, particularly in early childhood contexts. Her previous work has appeared in For the Learning of Mathematics, Teachers College Record, and the Journal of Curriculum Studies.
Keywords
Michigan State University (MSU), University of Georgia (UGA), University of Georgia Research Foundation, Inc. (UGARF)
06/15/2009

This project involves a longitudinal, ethnographic study of children's mathematical performances from preschool to first grade in both formal classroom settings and informal settings at school and home. The study seeks to identify opportunities for mathematical learning, to map varied performances of mathematical competence, to chart changes in mathematical performance over time, and to design and assess the impact of case studies for teacher education.

Michigan State University (MSU)
08/01/2017

This project will examine the impact on mathematics learning of an initiative to provide kindergartners in an urban school district with personal tablet devices that include free, widely available digital mathematics resources. The research questions examine how teachers use table-based mathematics resources during instruction, how caregivers and children engage with table-based mathematics resources, and how the resources then relate to kindergartners mathematics learning.

University of Georgia Research Foundation, Inc. (UGARF)
08/01/2013

This working conference will help university professors who teach elementary mathematics methods courses learn to use Complex Instruction, a research-proven pedagogy for building mathematical content knowledge and supporting the learning of diverse students.

Vanderbilt University
08/01/2021

Previous research has shown that play is an important vehicle for exploration, understanding, and learning because play involves many of the same features as sophisticated disciplinary engagement in mathematics. Despite work documenting the value of play broadly, little research has directly addressed how play could be supported or the value of doing so in mathematics classrooms. The purpose of this project is to investigate play in early elementary math education through a four-year longitudinal study that documents teacher learning and connects teacher practice with in-depth qualitative analyses of children over multiple years.