Anna B. Sfard () is a retired Israeli psychologist of mathematics education, focusing on the roles of communication and reification in mathematical reasoning. She is a professor emerita of Mathematics Learning Sciences at the

University of Haifa The University of Haifa (, ) is a public research university located on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel. Founded in 1963 as a branch of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the University of Haifa received full academic accreditation as an inde ...

Education and career

Sfard is the daughter of sociologist and philosopher

Zygmunt Bauman Zygmunt Bauman (; ; 19 November 1925 – 9 January 2017) was a Polish–British sociologist and philosopher. He was driven out of the Polish People's Republic during the 1968 Polish political crisis and forced to give up his Polish citizenship. ...

. She began studying physics at the

University of Warsaw The University of Warsaw (, ) is a public university, public research university in Warsaw, Poland. Established on November 19, 1816, it is the largest institution of higher learning in the country, offering 37 different fields of study as well ...

in Poland in 1967. However, before completing her studies there, she moved to Israel with her father during the

1968 Polish political crisis A series of major student, intellectual and other protests against the ruling Polish United Workers' Party of the Polish People's Republic took place in Poland in March 1968. The crisis led to the suppression of student strikes by security forces ...

, and entered the

Hebrew University of Jerusalem The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public university, public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. ...

. She earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics and physics there in 1972, a master's degree in mathematics in 1977, and a Ph.D. in 1989. Her doctoral dissertation, ''Teaching Theory of Algorithms in High-School'', was jointly supervised by

Menachem Magidor Menachem Magidor (; born January 24, 1946) is an Israeli mathematician who specializes in mathematical logic, in particular set theory. He served as president of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, was president of the Association for Symbolic ...

and

Michael Maschler Michael Bahir Maschler (; July 22, 1927 – July 20, 2008) was an Israeli mathematician well known for his contributions to the field of game theory. He was a professor in the Einstein Institute of Mathematics and the Center for the Study of ...

. After postdoctoral research in the UK, US, and Canada, she became an assistant professor of mathematics education at the University of Haifa in 1995. She was promoted to full professor there in 2001. She has also been Lappan-Phillips-Fitzgerald Professor of Mathematics Education at

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...

from 2003 to 2007, and Chair of Mathematics Education at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

from 2007 to 2009.

Selected publications

Sfard is the author of the book ''Thinking as communicating: Human development, development of discourses, and mathematizing'' (Cambridge University Press, 2008). She is also the author of two translations and the editor of several

edited volume Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written language, written, Image editing, visual, Audio engineer, audible, or Film editing, cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing p ...

s in mathematics education. Her research articles include: * * * * * * *

Recognition

Sfard was the recipient of the 2007 Hans Freudenthal Award of the

International Commission on Mathematical Instruction The International Commission on Mathematical Instruction (ICMI) is a commission of the International Mathematical Union and is an internationally acting organization focusing on mathematics education. ICMI was founded in 1908 at the International ...

, "in recognition of her highly significant and scientifically deep accomplishments within a consistent, long-term research programme focused on objectification and discourse in mathematics education". She was elected as a Fellow of the American Educational Research Association in 2015. She was elected as an international associate of the

National Academy of Education The National Academy of Education (NAEd) is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization in the United States that advances high-quality research to improve education policy and practice. Founded in 1965, the NAEd currently consists of over 300 elect ...

in 2016, and as an international honorary member of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

in 2023. She was an invited speaker at the 2022 (virtual)

International Congress of Mathematicians The International Congress of Mathematicians (ICM) is the largest conference for the topic of mathematics. It meets once every four years, hosted by the International Mathematical Union (IMU). The Fields Medals, the IMU Abacus Medal (known before ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sfard, Anna Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people) Living people Israeli mathematicians Israeli women mathematicians Israeli psychologists Israeli women psychologists Israeli mathematics educators Israeli women educators Hebrew University of Jerusalem alumni Academic staff of the University of Haifa Michigan State University faculty Academics of the University of London