Welcome!

The Poincare Institute at Tufts University offers three online graduate level courses in Mathematics Education for teachers.

Empowering teachers, enriching student learning

    Our mission is to improve the teaching and learning of middle and high school mathematics by helping teachers deepen their understanding of key mathematical concepts and of how students learn.
    Click here to see what some of our teachers have to say!

Supports teachers using any textbook or curriculum

    The Poincaré Institute courses supports teaching and learning in mathematics, regardless of the curriculum and textbooks schools chose to use. Courses complement the content and practices recommended by the Common Core standards and by teacher certification requirements.

Partnerships with school districts

    We work with individual teachers or through partnerships with schools and districts. A partnership ensures that the courses address teachers’ needs and support their collaborative work. The program spans three semesters, offering teachers an extended opportunity to engage with the course content and to collaborate with their colleagues.

Mathematics and pedagogical approach

    The three online courses focus on deep mathematical content and on teaching responsive to students’ reasoning about mathematics. Teachers work in online and face-to-face collaborative groups and are throughout supported by a team of mathematics and education faculty at Tufts University.
    The interactive courses in the program:
  • Use functions and their representations to offer a unified approach to topics from arithmetic operations to fractions, ratio, proportion, geometry, algebra, and the introduction to the ideas of calculus.
  • Integrate mathematical knowledge and pedagogical know-how.
  • Help teachers identify the needs of their students and design engaging activities with substantive mathematical content.

Why choose the Poincaré Institute online mathematics courses?

    We have worked with more than 240 teachers, and found improvements in the teaching and learning of mathematics:
  • Teachers gained confidence in their mathematical ability after taking these math education courses
  • Students were more engaged in class and enjoyed learning mathematics
  • Students’ scores on standardized math tests improved significantly. Their gains far surpassed those in similar districts.
  • District partnerships helped narrow the achievement gap between white and minority students.
  • The courses carry Tufts credits that can be transferred towards Masters degrees or certifications in Math or STEM education.
  • The courses can be combined with other classes at Tufts, many of them on-line, to obtain a Master in Education that fits your needs.

A Quick Look at the Poincaré Institute

    See a brief video about our work, our teachers, and our impact!