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Bylaws of the Special Interest Group for Research in Mathematics Education

Article I: Name, Affiliation, & Governing Authority

Section 1. Name. The group shall be known as the Special Interest Group For Research in Mathematics Education (SIG/RME).

Section 2. Affiliation. By virtue of its affiliation with the American Educational Research Association as a Special Interest Group, the organization pays annual dues to AERA and participates in the AERA Annual Meeting. The organization exists in its own right, however, and will continue to exist if for some reason it ceases to remain affiliated with AERA.

Section 3. Governing Authority. The Special Interest Group for Research in Mathematics Education (SIG/RME) shall be governed by these Bylaws as well as the Bylaws and Articles of Incorporation of the American Educational Research Association. SIG/RME Bylaws shall not conflict with the Bylaws and Articles of Incorporation of AERA.

Article II: Purpose

The purpose of SIG/RME is to promote and to disseminate research, development, and evaluative efforts in mathematics education, and to promote and encourage scholarly and productive exchanges among members of all the constituencies that affect, or are affected by, research on the learning and teaching of mathematics.

Article III: Membership

Section 1. Eligibility. Membership in the SIG shall be open to any AERA member who supports the purposes of the SIG and who pays the specified SIG dues and all additional fees required of SIG members by the Association.

Section 2. Joining the SIG. AERA members shall join the SIG by paying SIG dues and Association fees through the AERA Central Office using the appropriate AERA print or electronic form.

Section 3. Members in Good Standing. SIG members are considered ‘in good standing’ immediately upon the recording of their dues paid in full by the AERA Central Office.

Section 4. Duration. The length of membership in the SIG shall be from the date membership dues are recorded by the AERA Central Office to the end of the AERA membership year as established by the Association. AERA members may join the SIG at any time, but SIG membership expires simultaneously with AERA membership.

Section 5. Voting Rights. All SIG members in good standing, with fully paid SIG dues, shall be entitled to vote for SIG officers and on any other matter where a vote is required or taken.

Article IV: Officers, Terms, & Elections

Section 1. Officers. The governing board of SIG/RME shall be known as the SIG/RME Executive Board. The seven elected officers who comprise the Board shall include two chairpersons, an awards board member, an events board member, one treasurer, a communications board member, and an electronics board member.

Section 2. Qualifications. An elected officer must be a voting member of AERA as well as a member in good standing of SIG/RME. Individuals who have served as officers of SIG/RME will not be eligible for re-election to the Executive Board for five years following the completion of their most recent service on the Executive Board.

Section 3. Terms of Office. The term of office for membership on the SIG/RME Executive Board shall be two years. On alternative years the following Executive Board members shall be elected:

Odd-Numbered Years: Co-chairperson, Events Board Member, Communications Board Member, Electronics Board Member

Even-Numbered Years: Co-chairperson, Awards Board Member, and Treasurer

In the year of his or her election the co-chairperson assumes the position of junior chair. The following year that person assumes the position of senior chair. All terms of office begin at the close of the AERA Annual Meeting that follows the election balloting.

Section 4. Nominating and Election Procedures. Nominations for the SIG/RME Executive Board shall be solicited from the membership in the Summer SIG/RME Newsletter. The current Executive Board shall select from those nominated and eligible for election a slate of six candidates, two for each position to be filled. Candidates who agree to stand for election shall provide brief (one paragraph) biographies to the Electronics Board Member. The biographies shall be distributed in the Fall Newsletter. All election processes and tabulation of votes for designated officer positions for the following year shall be completed within the timeline and by the deadline established by AERA in conducting its electronic election of Officers of the Association. The membership shall be notified of the election results in the Winter Newsletter.

Section 5. Vacated Offices. When any elected officer for some reason leaves office before the end of the full term is completed, the office shall be declared vacant and the Executive Board, minus the leaving party, shall appoint by simple majority vote an Acting Officer for the duration of the individual’s term.

Section 6. Graduate Student Representatives. The SIG/RME board will include two Graduate Student Representatives, each of whom will serve for two years. These representatives are intended to serve and represent fellow graduate student members of the Special Interest Group-Research in Mathematics Education (SIG/RME) in the American Educational Research Association (AERA). Enrolled graduate student members of SIG-RME and AERA at large who can maintain this status for two consecutive years are eligible to serve as SIG-RME Graduate Student Representatives.

Duties

  • Participate in the SIG/RME Board meetings
  • Support the second-year SIG/RME Co-Chair with development of the AERA Annual Meeting program
  • Plan and facilitate graduate student programs during the AERA Annual Meeting as well as the SIG-RME Business Meeting/Reception
  • Select the incoming SIG-RME Graduate Student Representative for the following year
  • Design and disseminate announcements for upcoming programs and networking opportunities

Selection Process

A new representative (Junior Graduate Student Representative) will be selected each year, for a two-year term, beginning after the AERA Annual Meeting. A call for applications for the SIG/RME Graduate Student Representative positions will be disseminated to the graduate student members each January. The application consists of a curriculum vita and a 300-word statement on qualifications in carrying out the representative duties (including expected date of graduation). The current representatives will then review applications and present to the SIG/RME Board a list of three candidates in ranked order in February. The SIG/RME Board makes the final selection, seeking to ensure diversity of representation, and contacts the incoming representative to confirm acceptance of position.

Article V: Committees

At present SIG/RME has no standing committees; the responsibility for SIG/RME governance lies with the SIG/RME Executive Board. Should the need for change be perceived, that need can be met through the procedures outlined in Article X.

Article VI: Meetings & Business

Section 1. AERA Annual Meeting. There shall be a SIG/RME Business Meeting held each year, as part of the SIG/RME Membership Meeting during the American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting. All SIG/RME activities are open for discussion at the business meeting. The SIG/RME Executive Board shall also meet at the AERA Annual Meeting in preparation for the business meeting.

Section 2. NCTM Annual Meeting. SIG/RME shall, in concert with the NCTM Research Advisory Committee, sponsor research conference sessions in the annual NCTM meetings.

Section 3. Notice of Meetings. Announcement of the time and place of the AERA Annual Meeting, the SIG/RME Membership and Business Meeting, and the schedule of all SIG/RME-sponsored sessions at the AERA and NCTM Annual Meetings shall be included in the Winter SIG/RME Newsletter.

Section 4. Governing Procedures. Issues of procedure not covered by these Bylaws shall be governed by Robert’s Rules of Order (Revised).

Article VII: Membership Directory

Section 1. Title. The organization shall maintain on annual basis a SIG/RME Membership Directory

Section 2. Issuance & Updates. The membership directory shall be made available to all SIG/RME members electronically via the SIG/RME website (password-protected). Periodic updates may be provided if deemed necessary.

Article VIII: Newsletter

Section 1. Title. The organization shall sponsor a Newsletter of the Special Interest Group for Research in Mathematics Education of AERA.

Section 2. Editor. The Communications Board Member of SIG/RME shall serve as Newsletter Editor. The Executive Board and Newsletter Editor shall jointly determine the information coverage provided by the Newsletter.

Section 3. Issuance and Coverage. The newsletter shall be published three times per year. The Winter, Summer, and Fall issues shall appear respectively in March, June, and November. In addition to news and notices of interest to the mathematics education community, the issues of the Newsletter may include the following:

Winter

  • AERA SIG/RME sessions schedule
  • NCTM pre-session program and schedule
  • Election Results (New Officers)
  • Early Career Publication Award recipient(s)

Summer

  • Business Meeting Minutes
  • Treasurer’s Report
  • Solicitations for nominations to Executive Board
  • Call for Early Career Publication Award
  • Invited speaker’s paper (if available)
  • Call for NCTM Research Conference proposals & Solicitation of Reviewers

Fall

  • Biographies of candidates for office
  • Upcoming AERA and NCTM Research Conference highlights

Article IX: Finances

Section 1. Dues. As covered also in Article III, Section 4 of these Bylaws, the annual dues for membership in the organization shall be determined by AERA. Membership fees are due when a member renews his/her AERA membership. A member whose membership lapses is consider delinquent-.

Section 2. Fiscal Year. The fiscal year for the organization shall extend from the day immediately following the conclusion of the most recent AERA Annual Meeting through the final day of the next AERA Annual Meeting.

Section 3. Audit & Control. All receipts and disbursements shall be made only to bank accounts established by the Treasurer. The financial records of the group shall be presented to the membership by the Treasurer at the annual business meeting.

Section 4. Non-Profit Status. SIG/RME is a non-profit organization. All assets are used for specific SIG/RME activities and no officers, members, or private persons shall benefit financially from SIG/RME funds.

Section 5. SIG Dues Payment to AERA. SIG/RME recognizes the support provided to it by AERA and as such recognizes and complies with AERA to pay annual dues and to file an annual report.

Section 6. Dissolution. In the event SIG/RME is dissolved, the current team of officers shall remain in office until all affairs of the group have been properly terminated. Any funds remaining after payment of debts and obligations shall be used to hold one last bash for those members of SIG/RME who stay on to the bitter end.

Article X: Awards

Section 1. Early Career Publication Award.

The SIG/RME Early Career Publication Award recognizes outstanding mathematics education research published by individuals within five years of receiving their doctoral degrees.

Nomination Guidelines

  • The publication being nominated for the SIG/RME Early Career Publication Award may be based on the dissertation work of the nominee or other recent research the nominee has conducted.
  • The nominee should be either the single author or the first author (in the case of a jointly authored paper).
  • Only peer reviewed research publications are eligible for nomination; the award will not be given for a dissertation.
  • The nominee should have received his/her doctoral degree in mathematics education no earlier than 6 years prior to the nomination deadline

Nomination Deadline

  • Nominations for the award are submitted electronically to the Awards Board Member no later than the 15th of January of the year that the award is made.
  • The Awards Board Member is responsible for collecting and disseminating the nomination packets.

Nomination Packet.

Nominations should include (and are restricted to) the following:

  • a letter nominating the author of an early career publication. Please include the name of the author, the date he/she received the doctoral degree, and the name of the institution that conferred the degree.
  • The nominator should also include reasons that the paper should be considered as an example of an outstanding mathematics education research publication.
  • If the article is based on the author’s dissertation, please include the name of the dissertation director and complete bibliographic information about the dissertation including the dissertation abstract number. (Self-nominations are allowed.);
  • an electronic copy of the published paper, including complete bibliographic information;
  • an electronic copy of the Table of Contents of the journal or other peer reviewed research publication in which the paper appeared

Selection and Award Procedures

  • A sub-committee of the Executive Board, consisting of the Awards, Events, and Electronics Board Members, will consider the nominations.
  • Following consideration and discussion of all nominations, a recommendation can be made to the SIG/RME Executive Board and the Senior Co-Chair contacts the winner through an e-mail and formal letter, a copy of which will be forwarded to a person as requested by the awardee.
  • The Awards Board Member prepares a press release of the winning entry to be published in the Winter Newsletter and on the SIG/RME website, and makes arrangements for having the award plaque made.
  • The Awards Board Member sends email messages to each of the nominators of the other nominees to thank them for their interest and to invite them to resubmit the nomination during the next year (for those nominees who still meet the qualifications of the award.

Award Presentation

  • The award is formally presented at the SIG/RME Membership Meeting at the Annual Meeting of AERA; The recipient will be recognized at the NCTM Research Conference.
  • The award includes a stipend of $500 and a plaque that includes the winner’s name, the title of the winning article, and the name of the journal or peer reviewed research publication in which the article was published.

Section 2. Distinguished Scholar Award

The Special Interest Group for Research in Mathematics Education announces the creation of the Distinguished Scholar Award for Research in Mathematics Education. This award recognizes the programmatic research and research-mentoring work of a senior scholar within the field of mathematics education

Award Criteria
The recipient of the Distinguished Scholar award should be active in mathematiscs education research at the time the award is granted (as attested to, for example, by research publications of recent date or current doctoral advisees) and nominated by members of the community as exemplar in regard to the following two basic criteria. The nominee has:

  • designed and carried out programmatic research that originates in mathematics education and contributes to understanding of crucial phenomena related to mathematics teaching and learning, as represented in a corpus of writings and research projects that have contributed to the theoretical development of the field as well as having been grounded empirically;
  • developed the research capacity of the field, as attested to by the existence of a “school of thought” or intellectual heritage associated to the scholar’s name, a heritage that includes other individuals whom the scholar has had a direct influence in encouraging and helping become productive in mathematics education research or an identifiable domain of mathematics education research within which the nominee’s constructs and results are used regularly by other researchers;

The SIG/RME recognizes also that other features of a person’s work might add to the criteria above, strengthening a nomination, such as the following. The nominee has also made:

  • major contributions to the broader field of educational research, as represented by his or her participation (as author, speaker, or consultant) in research forums from fields other than mathematics education or by the recognition of his or her scholarship in other fields of inquiry (inclusive of all of educational research and the social sciences), or a
  • major impact to the practice of mathematics education at large, as represented by the existence of policy documents, curriculum materials, professional development programs, or a corpus of practitioner- or public-oriented literature to which the nominee has significantly contributed as an author

Selection and Award Procedures
The award will be given to one person, biannually on odd-numbered years. A call for nominations will be published in the field’s top journals and in the SIG/RME newsletter every odd-numbered year during the summer. Nominations will be due in May of the following even year. A competition will only be held if two or more nominations are received. The award will be announced in the SIG/RME newsletter, and in journals such as Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, Educational Studies in Mathematics, and the Educational Researcher during the fall of every even year. The award will be presented during the AERA Membership and Business meeting of the SIG/RME every odd-numbered year. A committee, whose composition is noted below, will select the awardee from among the nominees or else it may decide to give no award on a given year.

Award Procedure

  • The award will consist of a plaque and an invited address in the context of the AERA meeting on the odd-numbered year.
  • The SIG/RME will pay a set honorarium for the invited address, equal to what it usually pays to the invited speaker ($500 in 2004). The SIG/RME will also reimburse travel expenses to AERA for the awardee up to $2,000.
  • The SIG/RME will distribute the text of the invited address in one of the following ways: seeking publication of the text in a journal, producing an occasional paper to be shared with the members, or sponsoring the edition of a book collecting the address as well as other writings of the awardee.

Nomination Guidelines

  • A letter of nomination emailed to the Awards Board Member proposing the name of the nominee and describing the grounds on which the nominee meets the requirements for the award. Two criteria should be addressed in the letter:
    • A brief (no more than 500-word) nomination letter that describes the program of research carried out by the nominee as well as the grounds on which the nominee meets the requirements of the award; and
    • A recent CV.
  • Self-nominations will not be accepted. The award is open to scholars worldwide. Membership in AERA or SIG/RME is not required of the nominee.

Awards Committee
The SIG/RME board will establish an awards committee that will include five voting members and one ex-officio member:

  • A retired senior scholar in mathematics education, who will chair the Committee.
  • The previous awardee
  • Two active members of SIG/RME who are senior scholars in mathematics education research chosen by the SIG/RME board from the membership at large.
  • The outgoing co-chair of the SIG/RME board, who was “senior chair” at the time the committee was put together.
  • The co-chair of the SIG/RME board who, as a “junior chair,” had put together the committee and who becomes the “senior co-chair” at the time the awards’ committee meets (April of the even year) will be an ex-officio member of the awards committee (in charge of the logistics of the awards committee).
  • The committee may choose to consult with additional scholars who can speak to the relative influence of nominees in the field of educational research at large or in mathematics education writ large.