PhD in STEM Education candidate Megan Parise builds on bridging the gap between research and teaching, and finding supportive mentors in the program.
What drove you to enroll in the program?
I was driven to enroll in the program because of my desire to pursue the answers to questions I have about mathematics education and the passion to guide future mathematics educators.
What do you hope to get out of your educational experience?
I hoped to gain experience teaching pre-service mathematics teachers and learn how to conduct empirical research in this field. I also hoped to better understand the connections between research theories and teaching practice.
Were there any surprises and challenges along the way?
The Covid-19 pandemic posed an obvious significant challenge. Specifically, I found it challenging to no longer be in the physical environment with like-minded scholars who have helped me to process research and teaching.
What has been your experience with the faculty?
I have had many positive experiences interacting with the faculty in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. I have felt like a valued part of the collaborative teaching and research projects being done here at the University of Minnesota.
Which resources have you found through the program to help with your research?
My advisers and the other faculty in the Department have served as mentors with respect to my research. They have guided me through specific methodologies as well as encouraged me to pursue opportunities such as conferences and publications.
What do you hope to do after graduation?
Through this program, I have begun to understand the role of critique in mathematics education. After graduation, I hope to secure a job that allows me to continue to utilize critical theories in both research and teaching.
Did you have scholarship support? If so, what did it mean to you?
Each semester, I was provided with teaching and supervising appointments. Not only did these appointments cover my tuition, but they also allowed me to gain valuable experience teaching college-level courses in mathematics education.
What has been your favorite or most useful class and why?
The most useful class I took was the mathematics education research seminar. The topics and readings were very relevant to the specific research questions I had, and the assignments were applicable to a career in mathematics education research. I was also able to submit one of my assignments for this class for publication and experience the peer review process of publishing in an academic journal. (“Gender, sex, and heteronormativity in high school statistics textbooks” published July 2021 in Mathematics Education Research Journal).
Learn more about doctoral programs in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction.
