Researcher of the month: Jake McMullen
CERLI, Centre for Research on Learning and Instruction, and CELE, Centre for Research on Lifelong Learning and Education, present one researcher each month. In January Associate Professor Jake McMullen from CERLI takes the spotlight.
I am currently researching several topics related to the development of adaptive expertise in school mathematics. Specifically, we have two projects aimed at gaining a better understanding of how adaptive expertise develops and how it can be effectively supported in the classroom. Adaptive expertise is a highly desired outcome of mathematics instruction, as it involves possessing flexible and malleable knowledge that can be applied to novel tasks, such as real-life situations and future learning.
Too often, mathematics instruction focuses on procedural skills without fostering the deeper understanding necessary for students to apply their knowledge in new ways when needed. However, we know that some students are able to develop more flexible methods of using math, even through typical classroom instruction. Therefore, we are examining how this flexibility develops and designing learning environments to support the growth of adaptive expertise for all students.
I spend a good chunk of my research time managing ongoing projects and supervising doctoral researchers. This includes planning and designing learning environments for an upcoming classroom intervention, writing project funding applications, providing feedback on manuscripts, and occasionally getting the opportunity to write as a first author or conduct some analysis. My work requires a great deal of collaboration within the Department of Teacher Education, as well as across various faculties at the university and with other institutions both nationally and internationally.
When I’m not researching, I’m spending time with my family, running (sometimes I do this while researching), or making music. If there’s any time left over after that (with four kids, there generally isn’t) you can find me reading or playing my kids’ Switch.
One of the best pieces of advice I’ve gotten is to celebrate submissions, not acceptances (though I still celebrate those). The idea here is that we should be proud of and celebrate getting to the point that we can submit something to a journal or a funder and that whatever happens after that is out of our hands. I warmly recommend this (also brief walks outside in the middle of the day during winter).
