ES doctoral student Darrius Robinson wins Munger Three-Minute Thesis Competition
Third-year doctoral student and Rackham Merit Fellow Darrius Robinson was awarded first place and the people’s choice award in the Munger Three-Minute Thesis Competition on August 22. Robinson studies mathematics education in the Educational Studies program. His presentation was titled “Harnessing the Power of Teaching: Challenging Stereotype Development through Elementary Mathematics Instruction.
Darrius presented on his work that theorizes how the work of teaching can be intentionally managed in ways that challenge stereotypical notions of mathematical ability. Darrius examines how careful attention to, and management of, the implicit messages communicated within the classroom environment can challenge the development of racialized stereotypes related to intelligence and mathematical ability.
The Three Minute Thesis (3MT) is an academic competition that challenges current graduate and professional students to foster effective presentation and communication skills. Students have three minutes to present a compelling discussion on their research topic to the general public. All currently enrolled graduate and professional students in all disciplines at the university are eligible to participate and all work presented must be conducted here.
The Three Minute Thesis Competition serves as a celebration of the discoveries made by graduate and professional students and allows the broader community to learn about ongoing research at Michigan.
Robinson’s mathematics education colleague Nicolas Boileau said, “I was thrilled to receive news that he won for several reasons. First, Darrius and his work are brilliant and I was glad that was so quickly recognized.” Boileau added that he was excited to see education research so highly valued among a panel of judges and audience members from diverse fields.