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Interview with Mequè Edo, Doctor of Mathematics Education and Early Childhood Education Expert
Mequè Edo is an early childhood and primary education teacher and holds a PhD in Mathematics Education. She trained at the Escola de Mestres de Sant Cugat and, upon finishing, taught for a decade at l’Escoleta de Bellaterra. Later, the Autonomous University of Barcelona invited her to collaborate. Since then, she has trained future generations of early childhood teachers while building an academic career that includes research, a doctorate, and various administrative roles. She recently retired.
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Have you dedicated your whole life to mathematics education?
Yes, always. But with one foot in the classroom and the other in the university. I have been passionate about combining practice with reflection and training.
We would love to know a little more about where that calling comes from. Mequè, what was your school like?
When I was a little girl, I attended a Franco-era school from the age of 2 to 16. I don’t have good memories, but that’s normal, like many people of my generation. It was a religious school, rigid, very punitive. Everything was mechanical and repetitive transmission, with no meaning.
I remember one day when my mother told the teacher that I could read very well, but I didn’t understand what I was reading. And the response was that it would come later, that I would understand it later.
But reading is not just pronouncing words…
Exactly! That’s spelling, repeating, copying… And the same thing happened with mathematics. They would give us a sheet and we would trace numbers and complete operations, one after another. More than learning, it was doing for the sake of doing. There was no space for thinking or asking questions. It was all very impersonal.
And how do you go from that gray environment to wanting to become a teacher?
I always had the intuition that teaching could be done differently. That education could be different. I was still studying at the nuns’ school when I heard about the Escola de Mestres de Sant Cugat. And when I grew up and had to decide what I wanted to study, I had the immense luck of being a student at the Escola de Mestres. There, my life opened up. You could breathe a different way of doing things. They not only taught me to write in the language I think in, but to be a transmitter of that language.
I recall the initial vertigo of thinking that, in three years, I not only had to learn to write in Catalan, but also master it to be able to teach it. Fortunately, I had great teachers who taught me a valuable lesson: teachers don’t have to know everything, but we must be honest. And of course, if you have doubts, you pick up a dictionary in front of the children so they can see it because you’re teaching a good way of doing things.
It was there, at 18 years old, when I thought: “When I grow up, I want to do this. I want to be like them.” And since then, that has been my life.
And once you finished your training, how did you start practicing?
In the first years, I dedicated myself to being an elementary teacher. Later, with the civil service exams, I transitioned to early childhood education. However, in fact, I have always alternated between the two stages, although I became increasingly specialized in early childhood education.
And throughout all these years, have you been able to learn from the children?
Of course. You always learn from your students. Every time I leave a classroom, I think: “How did it go? What worked? What would I change if I did it again?” That constant reflection comes from observing the children: how they receive what you propose, how they interpret it, how they learn it. And that doesn’t just happen with the youngest ones. I also learn a lot from my university students.
The day you stop questioning how you prepare or approach a session, you may no longer be as connected to your work. Because you always learn from children.
What is the most beautiful memory you keep from your career?
One particularly special occasion was when, after five years of working at the school, we celebrated the tenth anniversary of the center. We decided to host a party for all the students, teachers, and families. Each class had to share something they were learning.
At that time, I was a tutor for a first-grade class, and my students wanted to explain that they had learned many things about numbers. A beautiful dialogue emerged about what numbers are, how they work… And from that conversation, the idea of making a mural was born. A number mural that accompanied us during first and second grade, and that served us to build counting by fives, by tens, to do addition and subtraction, multiplication… An activity so simple and yet so rich in meaning.
And now that you have closed this chapter, what do you take away as a teacher trainer?
Teacher training has been quite a journey. Initially, at the university, I taught 25 students for the entire year. That allowed me to provide very close support. However, over time, the ratios increased, and I ended up having groups of 80 students over three-month periods. In that context, I didn’t feel as comfortable.
However, fortunately, in recent years, I had a “little treat”: an elective course with 30 interested students, where we undertook a beautiful project that brought together my beginnings as a teacher with my end at the university. These students became mathematical godmothers to two children from the Escoleta. For three months, they were able to accompany them in their learning, and we did the mathematics sessions together. It has been a very beautiful experience… So much so that I want to write about it and leave it as a legacy.
Let’s now talk about learning mathematics
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What does it mean to do mathematics at 3, 4, or 5 years old?
Children do mathematics when they establish relationships. When adults present them with a challenge that they can take on, they realize that there is a question for which they need to search for possible answers. Here, they are mentally active.
When they trace numbers, they are not doing mathematics. That activates the hand, but not the mind.
And what myths do we have about learning mathematics in early childhood?
For many years, there has been a deeply ingrained notion that children knew nothing and adults had to impart knowledge to them. And the child only had to put it into practice… This exceptionally transmissive vision has predominated for a long time, but we know it is not effective.
This is, for me, the most serious myth: understanding mathematics as a set of mechanical steps. However, in early childhood, children need to be active —both physically and mentally. They have to move, manipulate, interpret, ask questions, discuss, and think. Without thinking, there is no mathematics.
How can we avoid math anxiety in early childhood?
In early childhood, it’s straightforward: it doesn’t exist, to begin with. Children are not afraid of mathematics. We are the ones, the adults, who project that fear.
Children want to learn, to be well, to be receptive. The problem appears when we transmit negative emotions, insecurity, or negative messages to them. And then the false belief is built that “they’re not good at mathematics.” That anxiety is not born from them, but from us as adults.
And about current education. How do you see it? What do you think are the main challenges?
I am not a specialist in educational policy, but from my experience, one of the great challenges is that in early childhood 25 students in a classroom sitting with pencil and paper doesn’t work. That doesn’t function. The curriculum already states that diverse dynamics are needed, including work in various environments and small groups.
Now, to make this a reality, we need more teachers, more adults in the classroom. Without this, diversifying dynamics is very difficult.
And also to be able to attend to diversity, right?
Exactly. Classrooms are increasingly diverse. To offer truly inclusive attention, more personalized attention is required. That’s why the key is the ratio: more hands, meaning more adults can accompany children closely, whether individually or in small groups.
Furthermore, diversity should be distributed well among schools, because if it is too concentrated, inclusion becomes very complicated. There are policies in place that attempt to address the issue, but much remains to be done.
Changing topics: recently the Education Minister has proposed removing screens from early childhood classrooms. What is your opinion about technology in the classroom?
I agree that for children from 0 to 3 years old, no screen is needed. They don’t need it. But this should be consistent: if we remove them from school, we should also limit them at home…
What really worries me is that we are removing the educational screen, the one with an educational intention. This measure makes me sad, because there is a part of the screen that can be very powerful. For example, a small game that works on number decomposition. This can be very valuable, as it involves a significant amount of mathematics.
Now, should these activities occupy 100% of classroom time? Of course not. But maybe 10 minutes and then combine it with a motor part where they go outside, climb trees, get wet in the river, etc.
I think that we often transition from one extreme to another. A few years ago, everyone wanted technology in the classroom. Now it seems we want it completely out. And this constant pendulum doesn’t help.
What relationship is there between research and the classroom?
Research is far more advanced than classroom changes. Changes in the classroom are very slow because we are trying to change practices that teachers have deeply ingrained. Although teachers agree with the principles, implementing them requires time, support, and confidence.
That’s why the transfer between research and practice is so important. For many years, university professors have provided ongoing training to facilitate this transfer. Not all research that is published applies to all contexts. That’s why many of us have dedicated ourselves to making that transfer. But still too little is done.
Let’s discuss initial and ongoing training: how would you improve it?
Initial training has gone through many different models, but honestly, teaching classes with groups of 80 students doesn’t seem like a good way to train teachers.
On the other hand, ongoing training is highly valid and makes a great deal of sense. Mainly because it is usually the will of many teachers to improve their practice and make fundamental changes, although those changes are scary — and that’s normal — the will to grow is there. And that makes it very valuable.
And I understand that with your university students, you also don’t propose transmissive classes, right?
No! It’s very different to give a transmissive class than a participatory class. When you have a group of students and distribute materials to them, asking them questions, they are the ones who think. So, if they, as future teachers, have lived it in their own skin, they will make their future students do the same. How can you train without having lived this experience of feeling the challenge and getting involved with a material?
We have talked about the past and present.
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Let’s now talk about the future. What would an ideal early childhood classroom be like for you?
When I think of a classroom, I am inspired by models from other countries. What would I like in my classroom? Versatile spaces that allow different forms of work: from moments with the whole group to small groups that can function autonomously, with several adults accompanying them.
The spaces should be welcoming and stimulating. The type of materials available is key, and also the outdoor space. The Nordic countries are very clear about this. Children need to spend at least one day a week outdoors in nature to explore, run, and get dirty. Motor development is very important.
However, there should also be spaces for reading, libraries with books, or perhaps a screen to watch something interesting together. A diverse space. Not one classroom, one adult, and 25 children.
Because, what role do spaces, time, and materials play?
This is a topic that we, early childhood educators, discuss frequently. What we are clear about is that spaces and materials are fundamental. We often discuss ways to rethink environments, diversify proposals, and create richer experiences, among other topics.
Time, on the other hand, is a pending subject. In early childhood, a schedule that is too fixed and rigid can cut short very valuable moments. We need time to be a little more flexible to take advantage of those moments when something important is happening.
If children are immersed in an exploration or meaningful play, the adult should have the freedom to extend that moment. Temporal rigidity may make sense in elementary school, but in early childhood, flowing with time is an integral part of the learning process.
We’re almost finished: you who have many years of experience, what would you say to a teacher who is just starting?
To be aware that in the classroom, she will find many different personalities. And that her challenge is to know and accompany each of those personalities, from where they are, step by step. Not all children are in the same place or at the same time, and that is part of the richness of early childhood.
It’s a challenge because it’s not always easy to establish a bond with each of the little ones. And sometimes it won’t be easy. But when you achieve it, and you see that the child advances, that they enjoy and grow, you reconcile with your task and with yourself. Accompanying well is a deep source of satisfaction.
And to a teacher who may be more disconnected from her work or who has doubts?
I would tell her the same thing I tell teachers who are beginning: if you want to dedicate yourself to this, you may devote your whole life to it. How can you maintain enthusiasm for so many years? First, allow yourself to stop and ask questions: Am I in the place where I want to be? Do I see myself doing this for many years?
To be a good teacher, you must have deep trust in children’s abilities and skills. But to do so, you must first feel good about yourself. Feel secure and prepared. The degree may seem easy to you, but practicing this work every day for your whole life is demanding. Now, if it resonates with you and makes you feel alive, it is a very rewarding profession.
To those who may have doubts or are going through a crisis, I would say that they should first ask themselves if they are truly in the place where they want to be. Second, ask for help. I myself have gone to many schools and teams to help rethink, advance, reformulate practices. There is always room for change.
Thank you very much, Mequè. It has been a really very rich conversation!
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