Generate a tailored SOP for Dr. Katherine Lewis. Improve your application with a focused, well-structured draft.
Katherine Lewis is an educator and researcher fundamentally concerned with designing accessible educational contexts, particularly for students with disabilities. Her primary line of research focuses on students' mathematics learning disabilities, specifically dyscalculia. She explores how students with neurological differences process numerical information and the significant difficulties they face in learning mathematics. Unlike traditional approaches to studying mathematics learning disabilities that often reject the deficit model, Katherine adopts a disability studies perspective, believing that individuals with physical, sensory, and neurological differences deserve accessible educational environments. Katherine's work aims to identify ways students’ unconventional understandings can be used to employ mathematical representations and address issues of access. Her research sits at the intersection of mathematics education and special education, addressing the theoretical and pedagogical divides that historically separated these fields. Additionally, Katherine is interested in designing supports for foster and adoptive parents, particularly to help children within the welfare system who struggle academically. She has created resources on her website to support these families. Katherine is also beginning to investigate the unique role of American Sign Language in supporting Deaf students' understanding of mathematical concepts.
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