Overview
Ashli-Ann Douglas is a Research Associate II with the Mathematics Education team at WestEd, where she engages in research and evaluation to understand and improve the mathematics learning experiences and outcomes for all students. Her work spans preschool, K–12, and adult basic education contexts and includes a focus on early childhood education, family math engagement, student math mindsets, and culturally responsive-sustaining learning opportunities.
Douglas leverages extensive experience with quantitative and qualitative research methodologies and expertise in mathematics teaching and learning to contribute to research and evaluation projects funded by federal and private philanthropic agencies. Several of these projects focus on evaluating the implementation and impact of mathematics curricula and professional development courses. She contributes to research design, instrument development and selection, data collection, data analysis, systematic literature reviews, and proposal writing. Douglas disseminates extensively through journal articles, book chapters, technical and nontechnical reports, and conference and community presentations. She also designs and implements professional learning to bridge the gap between research and practice.
Prior to WestEd, Douglas was a postdoctoral research fellow at Vanderbilt University where she led studies focused on home- and school-based supports for preschool-aged children’s math development as well as on the math experiences and identities of racially and economically marginalized K–12 students. She also consulted with AnLar to evaluate the implementation of a community-based program designed to improve the science competencies and self-perceptions of racially and economically marginalized middle school students. Douglas has completed certificates in college and elementary school teaching and currently serves as a co-facilitator of the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s Early Math Interest Forum. She is committed to transforming mathematics education for the benefit of all students through research and evaluation as well as supporting educators’ understanding and use of effective practices.
Education
- PhD in developmental psychology, Vanderbilt University
- MS in psychology, Vanderbilt University
- BA in psychology, Fisk University
Select Publications
Douglas, A.-A., Rittle-Johnson, B., Adler, R., Méndez-Fernández, A. P., Haymond, C., Brandon, J., & Durkin, K. (2024). “He’s probably the only teacher I’ve actually learned from”: Marginalized students’ experiences and views of high school mathematics. American Educational Research Journal, 61(5), 915–952.
Douglas, A.-A., Msall, C., Logan, F., & Rittle-Johnson, B. (2024). The impact of brief information-based interventions on the home math environment. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 94.
Douglas, A.-A., & Rittle-Johnson, B. (2024). Parental early math support: The role of parental knowledge about early math development. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 66, 124–134.
Ban, J., Msall, C., Douglas, A.-A., Rittle-Johnson, B., & Laski, E. (2024). Knowing what they know: Preschool teachers’ knowledge of early math skills and its relation to instruction. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 246.
Douglas, A.-A., Chow, E., & DePiper, J. N. (2024). Carnegie learning’s patterns professional learning: Spring 2024 findings and recommendations from participating teachers. WestEd.
Douglas, A.-A., Msall, C., & Rittle-Johnson, B. (2023). Developing and validating a measure of parental knowledge about early math development. Frontiers in Psychology, 14.
Douglas, A.-A., & Gagnier, K.M. (2023). Formative evaluation report: Firsthand mentors’ experiences with and perceptions of the program. AnLar.
Douglas, A.-A., Zippert, E. L., & Rittle-Johnson, B. (2021). Parents’ numeracy beliefs and their early numeracy support: A synthesis of the literature. In J. J. Lockman (Ed.), Advances in Child Development and Behavior, 61, 279–316.