During Ashley's section of the text (Forward, Intro, Chapter 2), Alan Schoenfeld's article from 1988, When Good Teaching Leads to Bad Results was referenced. When you have a moment, give it a read for a bit of background. It may be helpful after our conversation about chapters three and four.
Schoenfeld is a highly respected mathematics education researcher and scholar from Berkeley.
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Thursday, September 22, 2011
What is Mathematics and Why Do We Teach it? Three Readings for You
What assumptions do you hold about mathematics? As people who teach mathematics, have you spent time thinking, talking, and challenging what mathematics might be? There are three readings for you in the next section of our course that deal with the nature of mathematics.
First Reading:
What is the impact that traditional definitions have on us as learners? Please read "The Theory of Embodied Mathematics" from the book Where Mathematics Comes From by Lakoff and Nunez.
Using Lakoff and Nunez's notion of the mythology that surrounds math, (what they refer to as 'the romance of mathematics') it is important to look at traditional notions of mathematics and bump it up against a reconceptualized view.
Figuring out our own positioning towards mathematics is critical to becoming a reflective teacher of mathematics. What part of the romance do you believe? How does what you think about mathematics affect how you teach it?
Second Reading:
Reuben Hersh is an American mathematician who has written extensively about mathematics. He takes up his ideas from What is Mathematics, Really? in the following interview that I would like you to read: What Kind of Thing Is a Number? A Talk with Reuben Hersh Be sure to click on THE TALK at the bottom of the page to read the entire interview. He delves into his view of mathematics, the teaching of mathematics, and how our stance towards mathematics impacts how and what we teach.
Third Reading:
Your third reading is by Brent Davis, Professor and Research Chair for Mathematics Education, currently at the University of Calgary. His article Davis, B. (1995). Why teach mathematics? Mathematics education and enactivist theory. For the Learning of Mathematics, 15(2), 2-8 can be downloaded but cannot be linked directly. Please go to this link that contains a list of articles to be downloaded as PDFs: You will find the article second from the bottom of the page. Click on 1995 07 FLM.pdf to download the article.
Your next critical reflection shall focus on the nature of mathematics and why we should teach it. What, for you, are the big ideas? How, if at all, have your beliefs about mathematics shifted? What is it that you will need to know, to read, to figure out, to study to gain a better understanding of the nature of mathematics as something that might be a living discipline, a human activity?
First Reading:
What is the impact that traditional definitions have on us as learners? Please read "The Theory of Embodied Mathematics" from the book Where Mathematics Comes From by Lakoff and Nunez.
Using Lakoff and Nunez's notion of the mythology that surrounds math, (what they refer to as 'the romance of mathematics') it is important to look at traditional notions of mathematics and bump it up against a reconceptualized view.
Figuring out our own positioning towards mathematics is critical to becoming a reflective teacher of mathematics. What part of the romance do you believe? How does what you think about mathematics affect how you teach it?
Second Reading:
Reuben Hersh is an American mathematician who has written extensively about mathematics. He takes up his ideas from What is Mathematics, Really? in the following interview that I would like you to read: What Kind of Thing Is a Number? A Talk with Reuben Hersh Be sure to click on THE TALK at the bottom of the page to read the entire interview. He delves into his view of mathematics, the teaching of mathematics, and how our stance towards mathematics impacts how and what we teach.
Third Reading:
Your third reading is by Brent Davis, Professor and Research Chair for Mathematics Education, currently at the University of Calgary. His article Davis, B. (1995). Why teach mathematics? Mathematics education and enactivist theory. For the Learning of Mathematics, 15(2), 2-8 can be downloaded but cannot be linked directly. Please go to this link that contains a list of articles to be downloaded as PDFs: You will find the article second from the bottom of the page. Click on 1995 07 FLM.pdf to download the article.
Your next critical reflection shall focus on the nature of mathematics and why we should teach it. What, for you, are the big ideas? How, if at all, have your beliefs about mathematics shifted? What is it that you will need to know, to read, to figure out, to study to gain a better understanding of the nature of mathematics as something that might be a living discipline, a human activity?
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Do Schools Kill Creativity?
In each class on campus, I like to start our work together with the following short video to get the conversation going... so I see no reason why we cannot do this with our online course too.
Do Schools Kill Creativity?
Sir Ken Robinson makes an entertaining and profoundly moving case for creating an education system that nurtures creativity, rather than undermining it. He challenges the way we look at education and children.
Please take 20 minutes and watch this video.
So what does this mean for you, as a teacher, with regards to teaching and in particular with regards to teaching mathematics? What strikes you about what Sir Ken says?
Do Schools Kill Creativity?
Sir Ken Robinson makes an entertaining and profoundly moving case for creating an education system that nurtures creativity, rather than undermining it. He challenges the way we look at education and children.
Please take 20 minutes and watch this video.
So what does this mean for you, as a teacher, with regards to teaching and in particular with regards to teaching mathematics? What strikes you about what Sir Ken says?
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Welcome to our Education 6630 Course Blog
Welcome to the course blog that will accompany our online learning this fall within D2L.
This blog will contain links, resources, comments regarding our course work, and other information that might be needed to help us complete Ed 6630 online / by distance.
This blog will contain links, resources, comments regarding our course work, and other information that might be needed to help us complete Ed 6630 online / by distance.
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