Group members
Our group members have expertise in a variety of research areas.
Please see their individual profiles for research interests and supervision experience.
Students
Higher degree by research (HDR) students work on a range of research projects across mathematics education research areas.
Student projects
| Project Title | Student | Supervisor |
|---|---|---|
| Primary pre-service teachers' mathematical content knowledge | Sharyn Livy | Professor Colleen Vale, Dr Sandra Herbert, Dr Leicha Bragg |
| Task-related emotions in mathematics education | Fabio D’Agostin | Dr Gaye Williams, Dr Leicha Bragg, Professor Russell Tytler |
| Second language acquisition through digital games | Kristian Kirkwood | Dr Leicha Bragg, Dr Carly Sawatzki, Dr Hossein Shokouhi |
| Beyond worksheet: implementing educational computer game to improve students’ performance in classroom practice in mathematics learning | Jiqing Sun | Andrew Skourdoumbis, Dr Leicha Bragg |
| Mature-aged students' experience of learning mathematics in regional vocational education | Richard Voss | Dr Julianne Lynch, Dr Sandra Herbert |
| Teacher perspectives of rapid and multiform technological change in K-12 Education | Jodi Gordon | Dr Sandra Herbert, Dr Julianne Lynch, Dr Gaelene Hope-Rowe |
| Students' attitudes towards mathematics and math-gender stereotypes: gender and year levels | Yang Wu | Dr Wanty Widjaja, Dr Jun Li |
| Developing pre-service teachers' pedagogical content knowledge through lesson study | Meiliasari Meiliasari | Dr Wanty Widjaja, A/Prof Susie Groves, Professor Colleen Vale |
| The implementation of lesson study in mathematics: the case of Zambia | Sibeso Likando | A/Prof Susie Groves, Dr Wanty Widjaja, Dr Brian Doig |
| What is the impact of school-based science units? | Rebecca Greene | Dr Sandra Herbert, Dr Coral Campbell |
| Developing Spatial Reasoning Tasks that Impact on Middle Years Students’ Geometric Reasoning Skills with 2-dimensional shapes | Adrian Berenger | Dr Leicha Bragg, Dr Sandra Herbert |
Research projects
Learning to teach mathematics for social justice
2018–ongoing
The aim of this study is to investigate teaching and learning mathematics for social justice within a teacher education context. We argue teaching mathematics for social justice highlights the enabling role of mathematics and need for social justice within STEM. The study will offer pedagogies of dialogue as possibilities of hope and change.
Research team: Leicha Bragg, Deakin University; Cynthia Nicol, Vanessa Radzimski, Kwesi Yaro, Tiantain He, University of British Columbia
FLEX: Flexible pedagogical problem-solving to enable mathematical problem-solving in class
2015–ongoing
This study examines the nature of teachers’ implementing of mathematical problem-solving from various theoretical perspectives:
- eliciting of reasoning
- focus on teacher noticing
- teacher questions
- teacher use of technology
- classroom culture built
- optimistic (resilient) teacher actions.
The study will then consider these different theoretical perspectives simultaneously to identify whether, and if so how, teacher optimism can contribute to ability to implement problem solving lessons in ways that previous research has shown can enhance their quality.
Research team: Gaye Williams, Leicha. A Bragg, Sandra Herbert, Jun Li and Wanty Widjaja
Funding: This project has been funded by REDI seeding funding, consultancy fees from professional learning undertaken by Gaye Williams in schools before they became research schools, and DET funding sourced by one of the research schools to continue the project for another year to gain further professional learning benefits.
ReSolve Mathematics by Inquiry Project 2017
This project developed the Assessing Mathematical Reasoning Rubric for assessing reasoning together with illustrations of how teachers have used this resource in their classrooms to assess students’ mathematical reasoning.
Research team: Colleen Vale/Sandra Herbert, Leicha A Bragg, Esther Loong and Wanty Widjaja
Funding: $123 000, Australian Academy of Science and Australia Association of Mathematics Teachers
DET Transitions Project
2015
This project involved developing a taxonomy to inform the development of strategies to enhance student transition experiences (Grade 6 to Year 7).
Research team: Glenn Auld, Gaye Williams, Esther Loong and Wanty Widjaja
STEM Academy Evaluation
This project investigates the effectiveness of a workshop and mentor model provided by a university to develop teacher professional learning and student engagement in discipline specific and integrated STEM curricula.
Research team: Russell Tytler and Gaye Williams
Birth to Level 10 Numeracy Guide project
2018–ongoing
The aim of the Birth to Level 10 Numeracy Guide project is to inspire and build the capacity of a diverse audience for improvement and growth in numeracy understanding and practice. The components of the Birth to Level 10 Numeracy Guide are a roadmap for the capacity building of individual practitioners, as well as, a whole school approach to numeracy.
Research team: Leicha Bragg, Russell Tytler, and Martin Potter, Deakin University; Chris Walsh, Victoria University; Tracey Muir, Kim Beswick, Greg Oates, and Coral Murphy, University of Tasmania; Peter Saffin, The Mathematical Association of Victoria.
Funding: $229,570
Awards and funding
Dr Leicha Bragg
2011: Australian Learning and Teaching Council (ALTC) Citation Award for Teaching Excellence 'for outstanding curriculum and resource development that equips our future mathematics teachers with the confidence, passion, and skills they need to support student learning'
2017: Deakin University School of Education Teaching Award for 2014–2016
2009: Deakin University Deans Award for Excellence in Team Teaching
2008: Deakin University Teaching Excellence Award
2001: The Mathematical Association of Victoria Research Scholarship
Dr Wanty Widjaja
2017: Deakin University School of Education Teaching Award for 2015–2017
Collaborations
The members of the group have extensive research networks and collaborations both nationally and internationally.
Within Australia, we have research collaborations with the University of Melbourne, Monash University, the Australian Catholic University, University of Tasmania, University of Queensland, Western Sydney University and Flinders University.
Particular examples of international collaborations include the University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser University in Canada, and the University of Helsinki, Finland.
We also have affiliations with the following organisations:
- Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia
- International Group for Research into the Psychology of Mathematics Education
- Mathematical Association of Victoria
- Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers
- Australian Association of Researchers in Education
- Indonesian Mathematical Society
- British Columbia Association of Math Teachers, Canada.
Affiliations
We have affiliations with the following organisations:
- Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia
- International Group for Research into the Psychology of Mathematics Education
- Mathematical Association of Victoria
- Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers
- Australian Association of Researchers in Education
- Indonesian Mathematical Society
- British Columbia Association of Math Teachers, Canada.
Contact us
For more information about mathematics education research, please contact Dr Leicha Bragg.
Dr Leicha Bragg
Senior Lecturer in Education (Mathematics Education)
Email Leicha Bragg
+61 3 9244 6404