Rate My Professor Jo Hoffman

Dr. Jo Hoffman serves as Associate Professor of Elementary and Early Childhood Education at Bridgewater State University and currently holds the position of Interim Chair of the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. She earned her EdD from Rutgers University. Throughout her tenure at Bridgewater State University, Dr. Hoffman has taken on significant administrative roles, including Interim Dean of the College of Education and Health Sciences and Associate Dean of the College of Education and Allied Studies. In December 2021, she was appointed as the inaugural Bruce and Patricia Bartlett Endowed Professor of Civic Education and Engagement, a position she held until January 2025, during which she advanced equity-focused civic learning initiatives across disciplines and contributed to the university's ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge action plan.

Dr. Hoffman's research specializations encompass teaching and learning, pedagogy and education, curriculum development, professional development, mentoring, and student development, with a particular emphasis on civic education in early childhood settings. Her key publications include 'Equity-Focused Civic Learning Across Disciplines' in the Bridgewater Review (2023), co-authored 'Universal Children's Day 2024: Connecting Song, Story, and Social Justice' (Bridgewater Review, 2025), 'What we can learn from the first digital generation: Implications for developing twenty-first century learning and thinking skills in the primary grades' (2010), 'The partnership of an early childhood teacher education methods course and a school district's summer school program: Application of knowledge gained through PT3 involvement and PT3 mini grant to integrate technology' (2005), 'Student-Created Graphic Organizers Bring Complex Material to Life' (2003), 'Multiage Teachers' Beliefs and Practices' (2003), and 'Flexible Grouping Strategies in the Multiage Classroom' (2002). Her scholarship has garnered 139 citations. Dr. Hoffman has advised numerous undergraduate honors theses on topics such as teaching accurate history to elementary students, Black history in early childhood education, challenges of transitioning back to school from hospitalization, and strategies for long-term language development. She maintains an office in Moakley Center, Room 316.