Fact-checking Research Claims about Math Education in Manitoba

In a Winnipeg Free Press article, Mathematics education of Manitoba teachers should be based on research (November 13, 2024), Dr. Martha Koch, an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba, made several claims about recent amendments to the Teaching Certificates and Qualifications Regulation under The Education Administration Act. These amendments significantly reduced the subject-area expertise required for teacher certification. Koch used the phrase “research shows” 15 times in her article. Some key claims put forth in the article include: 1. “The recent changes mean that Manitoba’s teacher certification requirements are better aligned with current research in mathematics education.” 2. “Notably, research shows that early and middle years teachers (grades K-8) who have taken more undergraduate university courses in mathematics are not more effective teachers of mathematics. That is, their students do not have better outcomes in mathematics.” 3. “In fact, some studies have shown that K-8 students actually have lower achievement in mathematics if their teachers have more undergraduate courses in mathematics.” Since Koch’s statements seemed dubious, she was asked to provide supporting evidence. She responded by circulating an eight-page research synopsis referencing 22 articles and books. After reviewing all 22 references, we found that none credibly support the above claims, and some even contradict them. Additionally, Koch made statements about research on “mathematics knowledge for teaching” (MKT) in her Winnipeg Free Press article. The references she provided contain repeated, unambiguous statements emphasizing mathematical subject content knowledge as a necessary component of MKT—an important detail omitted by Koch. The potential consequences of relying on claims that appear to lack evidence are significant, particularly given their possible influence on public policy affecting Manitoba children.