By Nnasom David

When future teachers make mistakes in math, what does that mean for the classroom? For Nigerian-born researcher Temitope F. Egbedeyi, it’s not a flaw—it’s an opportunity.

Through a series of peer-reviewed publications and international conference presentations, Egbedeyi has become a leading voice in identifying and analyzing common fraction errors among preservice teachers. In a recent scholarly work, presented at the North American Chapter of the Psychology of Mathematics Education, he highlighted how teachers replicate misconceptions they were never taught to correct.

“We’re not just training teachers to teach math,” Egbedeyi notes. “We’re training them to unlearn and relearn. That’s the foundation of real progress.”

Working in the United States as a Ph.D. researcher at Kent State University, Egbedeyi uses mixed methods and cognitive analysis to study how educators engage with topics like division, multiplication, and fraction equivalence. His work informs new approaches to teacher preparation that emphasize deep conceptual understanding and inclusive instruction.

With over 15 co-authored academic papers, alongside reviewing manuscripts for global journals, and contributing to major educational conferences like AERA and AACTE, yet his commitment remains in improving the quality of maths instruction available to children around the world. While in Nigeria, Egbedeyi served as a research consultant for the Sanguine Academy and Dream to Legacy Initiative, where he worked on projects to improve early childhood education policy and practice in underserved communities.

Temitope Egbedeyi’s research continues to bridge two worlds—bringing cutting-edge educational science to the realities of African classrooms. His voice is one of transformation, and his work offers a blueprint for a more reflective, equitable, and effective future in global education.