Seyda Uysal

Seyda Uysal earned her PhD from Florida State University in May 2023, where she worked as a graduate research and teaching assistant. She specialized in mathematics education as part of her studies at the School of Teacher Education. In 2011, Seyda earned her bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Ankara University. She received her pedagogical teaching certificate from Ankara University in 2012. Prior to pursuing her doctorate, Seyda taught middle and high school mathematics from 2011 to 2015.

Seyda was a member of two grant projects within her studies at Florida State University. She worked for the Earthquake Rebuild (E-Rebuild), a game-based learning project, and had the opportunity to explore the cognitive and attitudinal contributions of innovative tools to learning mathematics for middle school students. She was also involved in the Women and Underrepresented Minorities in Mathematics (WURMM) project, through which she investigated the role of affective factors (beliefs on the nature of mathematics, beliefs about self, and emotional disposition towards mathematics) in learning mathematics and their influence on students’ secondary school-tertiary transition (STT) in mathematics.

Seyda broadened her research focus by including the lenses of sense of belonging, gender, and identity to examine the interconnected components of the STT in mathematics. Her research areas include the role of the affective domain (beliefs, attitudes, emotions), identity (gender, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and first-generation status), perceived competence, and sense of belonging to understand women’s persistence in mathematics. Seyda is interested in developing rigorous, innovative, and culturally responsive teaching practices for equitable instruction within teacher education programs. As well, she is interested in designing and improving various academic and socio-emotional support mechanisms to broaden the participation of women and racially/ethnically underrepresented students in mathematics, more broadly in STEM. As for her teaching philosophy, expanding inclusive spaces for all, especially for historically disadvantaged learners, is her ultimate focus for a just education.