AUSSIE

CHRIS COOMBES is an educator of 23 years experience in teaching mathematics from grades 7 to 12 in Australia and the United Kingdom; for 6 of those years, as a Senior Mathematics Curriculum Officer in the South Australian Education Department. He has worked as an A.U.S.S.I.E. Mathematics consultant in NYC since August 2002 with mathematics teachers from Grade 3 through to Grade 12.

His work in NYC has involved providing professional development at the classroom, school and regional level.  His work has included:

• Coaching and demonstrating to teachers in how to plan and teach effective courses of instruction based on information about their students and using student centered pedagogy,
• Developing, implementing and maintaining school wide NYS Standards based curriculum and assessment structures focusing on maximizing student achievement,
• Delivery and presenting workshops focusing on using the standards to plan effective instruction preparing students for 3-8/Regents testing, preparing new teachers for teaching and use of assessment data to both inform instruction and changes to curriculum.

His most recent work has involved developing and implementing standards based curriculum and ‘Design Your Own’ assessment systems in several NYC elementary and middle schools.  This work is continuing alongside work to both training math coaches in curriculum and assessment design and implementation that maximizes student achievement, and to support teachers to maximize student achievement through the use of standards based curriculum and student centered pedagogy.