Dave Burgess (2012) equates our overemphasis on standardized testing to fantasy football where we have "an intense focus on test scores (that) can lead to a shallow and narrow view of what's important". We care more about the statistics of the student (the football player) than we do about their educational growth and development (the whole of the team). This is the white elephant in my math classroom. I know better. I would love to have my students come out of my course as mathematical thinkers and problem solvers rather than regurgitators of specific mathematical facts. So what does it take? Desire? Check. Starting point? I believe Teaching Like a Pirate has given me a list of questions and hooks to help get started. Time? Well what teacher ever has enough time? And finally, Focus? I must remember I don't have to revamp my entire course in one sitting. I tend to think complete overhaul rather than on a lesson by lesson basis which is surely less daunting.
Math is everywhere. I can look for real life applications to engage my students. Make Math More.com has numerous lessons to assist me with this hook. However, as Burgess states "You must layer your hooks so that engagement doesn't wane" so I can't just stop there. Which is where I usually do. The additional hooks of music, mnemonics, contests, mission impossible, props, even interior design hooks can make any math lesson engaging. Cathy Yenca (November, 2013) offers a collaborative problem solving/error detection activity that sounds great on it's own. But that's just the activity, if I opened with a teaser hook and layered on a mission impossible hook what a lesson that would be!
It's doable, exciting, and all starts with me. As Burgess says, "The rest of your success is based on your willingness to relentlessly search for what engages students in the classroom and then having the guts to do it."
Burgess, D. (2012). Teach Like A Pirate.
Make Math More. Retrieved from http://www.makemathmore.com/
Yenca, C. (November 3, 2012). Revamping a Writing Strategy ... for Math! Retrieved from http://www.mathycathy.com/blog/2012/11/revamping-a-writing-strategy-for-math/
someecards. Retrieved from http://www.someecards.com/usercards/viewcard/MjAxMy1iOThiNjQ3OWZiYjM5ZmIy
Andrea, I agree that with math it is easy to fall into the fantasy football category, because it takes a little more thinking to make things engaging. I think one thing we both have going for us is desire and attitude. Dave Burgess (2012) said, "Much of your success as an educator has to do with your attitude towards teaching and towards kids. The rest of your success is based on your willingness to relentlessly search for what engages students in the classroom and then having the guts to do it."
ReplyDeleteI believe we have the attitude and the willingness. :)
Thanks for sharing the activity about the write around. I used to do that in my classes. I need to incorporate it again. When I do incorporate things like that, my students seem to really like it. For instance, one day we played and "I have ... who has..." game with simplifying radical expressions. At the end of class a students said, "we should do that more often."
Heather, I feel you are a wealth of information for teaching Math! I'm curious are you able to apply similar methods to your college students without them thinking it is childish?
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DeleteThank you for your post. One thing that Burgess also said is that we have to take risks in our classrooms. If we take risks, we are allowing our students the chance to climb the mountain. If we do not try new things, we are allowing our students to slip back down the mountain. (Burgess, 2012) I think some teachers are scared to take risks because things may not turned out as planned. However, if things do not turned out as plan, we use it as a learning experience for our next lessons.
ReplyDeleteVery true! We should not be afraid to fail because that's how we learn. I have the willingness just have to go for it!
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