A profile of Michigan's secondary public school mathematics teachers: Implications concerning the implementation of 'The Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics'

The purpose of the present study is to gather educational characteristics from a representative sample of secondary mathematics teachers in Michigan to ascertain how these characteristics relate to the implementation of the Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics. Questionnaires were sent to 560 mathematics instructors from 140 secondary schools throughout Michigan. Educational characteristics include number of years as a teacher, highest degree earned and mathematics concentration in undergraduate studies. A working knowledge of the Standards is measured by teacher membership in the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM)/Michigan Council of Teachers of Mathematics (MCTM), attendance at professional conferences, use of computers/calculators in the classroom and familiarity with the Standards. The results indicate that Michigan's secondary mathematics teachers are well educated in mathematics, but have limited access to the standardized information regarding the current trends in mathematics education.