Title:  On Postsecondary Learning and Development in Mathematics

Time:  saturday,  2:00 pM - 3:00 PM

Abstract: In building upon nearly sixty years of educational research establishing the inextricable link between schoolchildren’s learning and development, our work has focused on investigating this link in college students. Our longitudinal cohort research over the past two decades has extensively investigated the academic trajectories of tens of thousands of college students, leading to the development of a robust explanatory framework for postsecondary academic success. Our most recent work has shifted the focus of this research to the investigation of learning outcomes in mathematics. Through the analysis of student responses to our innovative psychometric instruments, we have identified a unique psychoeducational facet of students’ academic profiles specific to mathematics that is not sufficiently explained by other domain-general facets already under measure. The incorporation of direct academic information in subsequent analyses has led to additional insights regarding mathematics learning and development at the college level.  In this presentation, the prior seminal work of James P. Comer, Michael Ben-Avie, and our other colleagues will be briefly reviewed to provide context for our current work. The development and refinement of our new psychometric instruments will also be discussed. The results of our analyses conducted on psychometric data and direct academic measures will be given within the larger context of improving collegiate outcomes in mathematics. Updates on current work and directions for future research will also be given. 

Bio: Brian Darrow, Jr. is an Assistant Professor of Pure Mathematics at Central Connecticut State University. He completed his B.S. in Mathematics with Secondary Education Certification from Southern Connecticut State University, where he worked after graduation as an adjunct professor of mathematics and researcher within the School of Health and Human Services and the University’s Division of Institutional Effectiveness. He then became a high school mathematics teacher and mathematics team coach while earning master’s degrees and a Ph.D. from Columbia University. After this, he returned to his undergraduate alma mater to serve as an assistant professor before joining the faculty at Central. In addition to his mathematical work in combinatorics and number theory, he maintains a deep interest in mathematics education research and practice. He proudly continues to mentor undergraduate students in research in each of these areas.