Nickolaus Ortiz
Assistant Professor - Mathematics Education Middle and Secondary Education- Education
Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction (mathematics education), Texas A&M University, 2018
M.Ed. in Mathematics Education, Georgia State University
B.S. in Secondary Mathematics Education, Kennesaw State University
- Biography
Nickolaus Ortiz earned his doctorate in curriculum and instruction with a focus on mathematics education from Texas A&M University in 2018. Following graduate work, he served as a post-doctoral research associate at Michigan State University and is currently a tenure track assistant professor in the College of Education & Human Development’s Department of Middle and Secondary Education.
Ortiz is a mathematics teacher educator and researcher whose research interests deal with Black/African-American students and the impact that teachers have on these students’ performance and appreciation for mathematics. He is very much interested in how ontological Blackness is manifested and/or stifled during high-quality mathematics instruction that involves, for example, teaching for conceptual understanding and utilizing mathematics discourse, as well as identifying new and innovative ways for Black children to demonstrate the mathematics proficiency that already exists within. His scholarship deals with these issues, centering the brilliance of Black children in mathematics as an irrefutable reality. Ortiz is also a musician and loves everything from Gladys Knight to J. Cole, and utilizes music and Black vernacular in his approach to culturally relevant mathematics pedagogy.
- Publications
Ortiz, N. A., and Davis, T. J. (in-press). “Planning for equity: Analyzing the cultural relevance of pre-service teachers’ lesson plans.” Paper selected for the annual meeting of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (PME-NA), St. Louis, MO.
Ortiz, N. A., Capraro, M., and Capraro, R. (2018). “Does it really matter? Exploring cultural relevance within a majority White classroom.” Journal of Negro Education, 87(4), 404-419.
Young, J. R., Young, J. L., Cason, M., Ortiz, N. A., Foster, M., and Hamilton, C. (2018). “Concept raps versus concept maps: A culturally responsive approach to STEM vocabulary development.” Education Sciences, 8(108), 1-10.
Young, J. R., Ortiz, N. A., and Young, J. L. (2016). “STEMulating interest: A meta-analysis of the effects of out-of-school time on student STEM interest.” International Journal of Education in Mathematics, Science and Technology, 5(1), 62-74. DOI: 10.18404/ijemst.