Education

Ph.D., Early Childhood Education, University of Georgia, United States

B.S.,   Early Childhood Education, Middle East Technical University, Turkey

Research Expertise

Socio-cultural contexts of young children’s mathematics, Family-school-community relationships in culturally and linguistically diverse settings

Biography

Elif Karsli-Calamak is an assistant professor in early mathematics education at the Department of Instruction and Teacher Education.  She began her teaching career in a public kindergarten in Turkey. Later as a Fulbright scholar, she received her doctorate in Early Childhood Education from the University of Georgia. Her doctoral studies focused on children’s embodied mathematical practices in and out of school contexts and family perspectives on early mathematics education. Currently, she has an ongoing research grant funded by The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey about supporting teachers of Syrian refugee children in public schools in Turkey and collaborating with refugee families with a focus on mathematics education.

Publications

Karsli-Calamak, E. & Allexsaht-Snider, M. (in press). Manifestations of mathematics within the power dynamics in a Pre-K classroom. Teachers College Record.

Karsli-Calamak, E. & Kilinc S. (in press). Becoming the teacher of a refugee child: Teachers’ evolving experiences in Turkey. Special Issue: Inclusive Education and Refugees. International Journal of Inclusive Education.

 Karsli-Calamak, E. & Erdemir, E. (in press). Türkiye’deki Suriyeli çocuklar ve aileleri: Anlatılmayan karşıt hikâyeler [Syrian children and families in Turkey: Missing stories and counter narratives]. Yaşadıkça Eğitim Dergisi / Journal of Education for Life.

Karsli-Calamak, E. (2019). First Opinion: Manifestations of mathematical knowledge within a South Western Nigerian Market. [Review of the book Baby Goes to Market by Atinuke]. First Opinions, Second Reactions, 12(1), 6-8.

Karsli-Calamak, E. (2018). Syrian mothers producing counter stories in co-constructed school spaces: Rethinking the role of schools in engaging refugee families. European Education, 50(1), 42-57.

Allexsaht-Snider, M., Vazquez Dominguez, M., Buxton, C., & Karsli, E. (2017). Figured worlds of immigrant fathers, sons, and daughters in steps to college through science bilingual family workshops. Gender & Education. Advanced online publication.

Buxton, C. Allexsaht-Snider, M., Suriel, R. Kayumova, S. Karsli, E., Aghasaleh, R. (2016). Reassembling science teacher educator professional learning in the LISELL-B project. In Buxton, C. and Allexsaht-Snider, M. (Eds.), Improving Science Teaching and Learning for English Language Learners: Lessons from Four Contexts (pp.70-92).  NY: Routledge.       

Karsli, E. & Allexsaht-Snider, M. (2015). Video-cued parental dialogs: A promising venue for exploring early childhood mathematics. Education and Science / Eğitim ve Bilim, 40 (179), 217-240.

Kayumova, S., Karsli, E., Allexsaht-Snider, A. & Buxton, C. (2015). Latina mothers and daughters: Ways of knowing, being, and becoming in the context of bilingual family science workshop. Anthropology & Education Quarterly, 46(3), 260-276.    

Karsli, E. (2014). Home-school connections in a multicultural community: Learning from and with culturally and linguistically diverse families (Review of the Book). Journal of Family Diversity in Education, 1(1), 75-78.

Allexsaht-Snider, M., Karsli, E. & Kayumova, S. (2013). A bilingual approach to developing English for academic purposes in Science and English as a Lingua Franca with young adolescent immigrants and their families. In Y. Bayyurt and S. Akcan (Eds.), (Full Paper) Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference of English as a Lingua Franca, (pp. 233-240). Bogaziçi University Press.

Karsli, E., & Allexsaht-Snider, M. (2012). A cross-cultural perspective on father involvement in early childhood education: Turkey and the United States. In D. Hiatt Michael and H. Ho (Eds.), Promising practices for fathers’ involvement in their children’s education (pp.77-98). NC: Charlotte: Information Age Publishing.   

Selected Presentations

Tuna, M. E. & Karsli, E. (July-2017). An Analysis of Turkey’s Policy on Education of Syrian Children. Paper presented at BRISMES Conference: Movement and Migration in the Middle East: People and Ideas in Flux, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, U.K.

Karsli, E. (July-2016). Young Children’s Embodied Mathematical Practices in a Pre-K Classroom. ICME-13 International Congress on Mathematics Education, Hamburg, Germany.

Karsli, E. & Allexsaht-Snider, M. (April - 2015) Manifestations of mathematics within the disciplinary dynamics of a Pre-K classroom. Paper presented at the 2015 meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), Chicago, IL, USA.

Allexsaht-Snider, M., Karsli, E., Buxton, C., Kayumova, S. (April - 2015) Latino Family Engagement in Science Education: Fathers’ Journeys with Their Children from Middle to High School to College. Paper presented at the 2015 meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), Chicago, IL, USA.

Karsli, E. & Allexsaht-Snider, M. (April - 2014). A methodological prospect in discovering young children’s mathematics: Video-cued multivocal parental dialogs. Paper presented at 18th International Roundtable on School, Family and Community Partnerships. Philadelphia, PA, USA.

Karsli, E., & Allexsaht-Snider, M. (September - 2013). Dialogs with parents on children’s mathematics. Paper presented at 9th European Network about Parents in Education (ERNAPE) Conference. University of Lisboa, PORTUGAL.

Kayumova, S., Karsli, E. Allexsaht-Snider, M. & Buxton, C. (April-2013). Negotiating, contesting and appropriating identities in hybrid spaces: Pasos hacia la universidad/Steps to college. Paper presented at the 2013 meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), San Francisco, CA, USA.

Karsli, E. & Freeman, M. (November-2012). A post-structural perspective on young children’s mathematics. Paper presented at the 20th International Reconceptualizing Early Childhood Education Conference (RECE). Penn State University, State College, PA, USA.

Karsli, E. & Allexsaht-Snider, M. (July - 2011). Father-teacher partnership in early childhood education in two different contexts: Turkey and the United States. Poster presented at 8th European Network about Parents in Education (ERNAPE) Conference. University of Bicocca-Milano, ITALY.