The professional Mathlete® shares approach to getting students to love math
Reston, Va., September 27, 2016 -Today, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) announced Baltimore Ravens Offensive Lineman and published mathematician John Urschel will be a featured speaker at the 2017 NCTM Annual Meeting & Exposition in San Antonio (April 5-8).
John Urschel leverages both his brawn and his brains to succeed on the field and off of it. The 6-foot-3, 305-pound offensive lineman is obtaining a Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and holds a master's degree in mathematics from Penn State. In 2014, he and a team of researchers submitted a paper titled, “A Cascadic Multigrid Algorithm for Computing the Fiedler Vector of Graph Laplacians” that was accepted for publication in the Journal of Computational Mathematics.
During Urschel's session, The Winning Equation: How to Get More Students to Love Math, he will share his journey of where a love of math has taken him and where it can take students. Urschel will help teachers prove that math extends far beyond the confines of the classroom and into everyday life.
The NCTM Annual Meeting and Exposition offers more than 700 sessions and workshops covering all levels, pre-K-grade 12. The four-day conference, April 5-8, will feature presenters from all across the country and will offer discussions about access and equity, assessment, technology, professionalism, and more.
“We are honored and excited to have John Urschel, a brilliant mathematician and exceptional athlete, speak to our teachers,” said NCTM President Matt Larson. “John brings a unique perspective to math education and we look forward to him sharing new and engaging ways to reach students.”
Earlier this year, Urschel teamed up with Texas Instruments to explore the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) behind sports, in a new series of activities designed to inspire the next generation of problem solvers and critical thinkers. STEM Behind Sports kicked off with “Field Goal for the Win!” a fun, free activity about the math behind kicking a field goal. Other activities in the series explore running, cycling and swimming.
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About NCTM
The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics is the public voice of mathematics education, providing vision, leadership, and professional development to support teachers in ensuring mathematics learning of the highest quality for each and every student. It is the world's largest organization dedicated to improving mathematics education in prekindergarten through grade 12. The Council's Principles and Standards for School Mathematics includes guidelines for excellence in mathematics education and issues a call for all students to engage in more challenging mathematics. Its Curriculum Focal Points for Prekindergarten through Grade 8Mathematics identifies the most important mathematical topics for each grade level. Focus in High School Mathematics: Reasoning and Sense Making advocates practical changes to the high school mathematics curriculum to refocus learning on reasoning and sense making. Principles to Actions: Ensuring Mathematical Success for All describes the policies and actions required for a high-quality mathematics education for each and every student. NCTM is dedicated to ongoing dialogue and constructive discussion with all stakeholders about what is best for our nation's students.
Media Contact: Stacey Finkel, 703-304-1377.