Laurent Gerard Fountaine heard about the Master of Mathematics for Teachers (MMT) program when it first began in 2010. He encountered an idea that would stay with him for many years: pursuing a master's degree in mathematics. Today, after graduating from the MMT in 2023, Fountaine shares, “In hindsight, I feel I should have pursued the MMT ten years ago.”
At the time, he had young children and new responsibilities, so he put the idea on hold. As his children grew older and more independent, the thought of pursuing a master's degree resurfaced. This time, he felt ready. After researching several master's degree programs, he chose the MMT because it focused purely on mathematics and its application to education, rather than on pedagogical methods. Along with a pay raise being a strong motivator, this distinction appealed to him, as he wanted to deepen his understanding of math itself, and not just learn how to teach it better.
Since the MMT is part-time and completely online, Fountaine was able to pursue it along with his classroom commitments. Being a high school educator in Saskatchewan, he began to involve his students in his learning process. From the MMT he learned about using LaTeX for assignments and used it to create assignments for his students. Watching him learn and apply his learning in the classroom set a wonderful example for his students that learning is a continuous journey. It wasn't just about number crunching; there was a whole world of mathematical theory and application to explore. Fountaine’s students saw him struggle through tough courses, particularly the course in problem solving, which required a significant amount of work.
Fountaine took courses on algorithms and calculus, even though he had not studied them in depth before. He understood the issues that his own students face now since he was both a student and an educator. He connected with other MMT students from the same province, including one who had interned with him earlier, fostering new friendships. Learning from his experience, recently one of Fountaine’s friends signed up for the MMT as well.
An awardee of the MMT Indigenous Scholarship, Fountaine has been a great influencer for his students, encouraging them to apply for scholarships and teaching them about financial literacy.
With award-winning professors teaching the course, Fountaine exclaimed that all instructors in the MMT inspired him to leave his comfort zone and try difficult courses. Going through the process of learning math again was invigorating for him. It required constant logical thinking and understanding the reasoning behind every step. “Everything in math has a proof, and I enjoyed diving into books to research the history of mathematics. Writing long papers, particularly 25-page essays on the contributions of mathematicians, was intimidating but rewarding,” he says.
“Since my approach to teaching has always been based on problem-solving, I enjoyed pursuing the MMT as this resonated with my teaching ideologies,” Fountaine reflects. Today, he feels like he has delved deeper into math and is now able to be a better educator to his students, showing them the importance of lifelong learning.
Story by Lata Punetha