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Leadership. Feedback. Professional Development.

Terms that get thrown around a lot - but what do they actually mean? More importantly, how do we develop those tools so they actually make a difference in the classroom?!

Thankfully, educator Alison Mello is an expert on leadership in math education, and she joined Vanessa to discuss:

• why PD often fails teachers and what to do about it
• how to be a great leader - both for teachers and administrators
• how to give and receive effective feedback

And as mentioned in the episode, you can still register for Alison's Get Your Workshop On 2026 (early bird pricing ends March 31st so don't wait!)

About Alison: (Website, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook)

Alison J. Mello has been in education for 30 years as a classroom teacher, author, national speaker, and math consultant. Alison enjoys developing practical strategies to address issues that districts and teachers face in their schools and classrooms every day. She uses her understanding of leadership, curriculum and best practices to inspire and assist leaders and teachers in elevating and transforming math instruction.

Contact us:

• Vanessa Vakharia: Instagram, TikTok, Email
• Math Therapy: Text the Podcast

More Math Therapy:

• Get the book: Corwin, Amazon
• Audiobook: Audible, Spotify
• Merch store: Shop here

Send us a text! (US messaging rates apply)

Back in 2020, math teacher (with math trauma) Kylie Fraser found herself in Vanessa's Math Therapy session at the Mighty Peace Teachers Convention in Grand Prairie, Alberta and was stunned how much she saw of herself in Vanessa's story.

Flash forward to earlier this month when Vanessa returned to Grand Prairie to deliver the keynote, and 30 minutes before hitting the stage they reunited and impulsively decided to record this convo about what Kylie has been up to in her math journey in the last 6 years!

They discussed:

• the math trauma Kylie saw in herself and her students and what she did about it
• how language around math influences our self-worth
• how to heal from math trauma through shared stories

On that note - if you know someone that should hear this story, share it!

Contact us:

• Vanessa Vakharia: Instagram, TikTok, Email
• Math Therapy: Text the Podcast

More Math Therapy:

• Get the book: Corwin, Amazon
• Audiobook: Audible, Spotify
• Merch store: Shop here

Send us a text! (US messaging rates apply)

The Oscars are this Sunday, and to be completely transparent, Vanessa hasn't seen any of the nominations. BUT, she is always ready to hand out an award to anyone blending pop culture and math, so today we are bringing you our 2022 interview with Ben Zauzmer, who has been using statistical analysis every awards season to predict the Oscar winners with math!

Ben is also Assistant General Manager for the NY Mets baseball team after spending years in MLB baseball analytics - that's right, he is Moneyball IRL! You can check out his predictions for this year below, and you can try to send Vanessa movie recommendations but we all know if they aren't Christmas romcoms they probably won't make her top 10.

• Ben's 2026 Oscars predictions for Hollywood Reporter
• Ben's 2026 nominee predictions - see how he did!
• Buy Ben’s Book: “Oscarmetrics: The Math Behind the Biggest Night in Hollywood”

Contact us:

• Vanessa Vakharia: Instagram, TikTok, Email
• Math Therapy: Text the Podcast

More Math Therapy:

• Get the book: Corwin, Amazon
• Audiobook: Audible, Spotify
• Merch store: Shop here