The International Commission on Mathematical Instruction (ICMI), an international mathematics education association and part of the International Mathematical Union, has honored Deborah Ball by awarding her the 2017 Felix Klein Medal. This award, with which ICMI “honors the most meritorious scholars within the mathematics education community” for their lifetime achievement in mathematics education research, is named for Felix Klein, a leading mathematician at the turn of the last century who was distinguished as well for his pioneering contributions to school mathematics education.
Ball received the award “in recognition of her outstanding contributions and her leadership role in deepening our understanding of the complexities of teaching mathematics and in improving the practice of teaching and of teacher education.” In announcing the award, ICMI recounted Ball’s influential career by highlighting two main lines of work: her development of the theory of mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT) and her efforts to transform teacher preparation to focus on high-leverage practices that are central to the work of teaching.
The full award announcement is available here.