The Time for Change has Come

Once upon a time, there were no public schools. Once upon a time, it was not the job of the government to teach our young people. Once upon a time, it was the parents’ job to teach and train their children not only life skills (which many public schools insist on teaching) but career skills. The blacksmith would give his child on the job training in the art of blacksmithing. The baker the same to his child. The merchant the same to his.

But then man invented the factory.

Before the human race decided to sophisticate itself, there were only experts. Professional degree training began at age six and ended whenever they decided it was over. Now, I by no means disapprove of the good fruit the industrial revolution granted humanity, but some of the bad fruit is still laying around. Our current public schools system is designed to produce a factory worker, but society no longer is in need of factory workers. Many of the people who manage to escape the factory mindset of school are hard at work designing robotics to replace the need for others to work in a factory. While some may see this as a curse, I see it as a blessing. People have amazing creative potential, but factories do not appreciate this. Factories give people easy to follow instructions then scrupulously watch over them to ensure proper execution… much like the school system.

This is clearly not an easy problem to fix, however the solution is beginning to present itself. New technologies have caused the advent of classroom gamification, mass customized learning and countless other previously impossible learning models, all of which gives more power to the student to learn at a comfortable pace and in the best way for them. These technologies are more equipped to enable student success in the information age, where mastery and creativity are key and Google has removed the need to memorize formulas.

Let's Make Math Fun!

In today’s day in age, it is so common for students to walk into their math classroom and expect nothing more than a lecture with a homework assignment to go along with it. I, along with many others, have experienced this in my life. Day in and day out, we take notes on a PowerPoint the teacher has made and do an assignment straight from the textbook. Everyone can agree that this can get boring and repetitive, no matter how much you love math. This can create a very black and white environment for your students that is not promoting any creativity. Educators of Mathematics can have a powerful influence by making math FUN and may even give some students a newfound love for math.

There are many ways that educators can make your classroom setting more enjoyable for students. One important way is to share their passion. If you aren’t excited about what you are teaching, why should your students be? We can change the way our students talk about math just by setting an example. I have seen as well that using technology and media in your classroom can also keep your students engaged. By changing up the routine and providing them with something new, it can be a lot more exciting as a student and make the lesson that much more interesting. If we can connect the math to something that you know the students enjoy, they are more likely to buy in. Adding games, discussions, and real-life applications are all ways to keep things fresh and new. Having more discussions and friendly competitions in your classroom is also a great way for your students to get to know one-another. When a student is more comfortable with who is around them, they are more likely to speak up during class and not be afraid to ask questions.

Changing up the student’s perspective of “I hate math”, “math is boring”, and “I’ll never be good at math” is so important in order to create a positive environment in your classroom. If we are able to shift student’s mindsets into thinking that math actually can be fun we are able to set them up for more success in the future.  

The Importance of Proofs in Math Classes

Proof: 

First and foremost, I absolutely demise doing proofs. I look at them, I think, I go to a different problem, I come back, think, go to another problem, then finally muster up an answer to the proof, and to be blunt, the success rate has been dismal of late. But, although I wish I would do better when being tested on it, it is extremely important in a math class to learn proofs and learn how to do proofs for a variety of reasons.  

The main reason is glaringly obvious; it shows the student has an overall understanding of the subject at hand. This understanding is on a different level than just computing numbers. When a student is given the Pythagorean Theorem and is asked to find the hypotenuse of the right triangle, do they really understand where everything is coming from, or are they just simply taking the example the teacher gave and applying it to their situation. When I was a high school student, I did the latter. My teacher was great, everyone enjoyed having him, but going into college I found myself lacking behind the rest of the students because all we needed to do was a simple plug and chug. Looking back, if proofs would have been involved, I would have been far more prepared for the life as a math major. 

Along with gaining a full understanding of the content, proofs are crucial to Geometry. To do well in Geometry, the student can’t rely on equations to get them through, unless they are doing area formulas. Instead, they need to realize that, for example, two opposite angles made by two intersecting lines are vertical angles, and so forth, congruent. Not only do they need to realize it, but they need to understand why that makes them equal and how that can help them determine other things. Proofs help in this step. 

Since proofs are crucial, it would be terrible if they were taken out of the classroom. Yes, they may be difficult and bring test scores down, but with the help of a good teacher, proofs can only help the student achieve their future goals. Without proofs, students do not gain reasoning, which is a critical aspect for all occupations. So even for those students who say, “When will I ever use this?”, it is important, because they will use aspects of everything we teach every day. 

 

Standard/Target Based Learning

              Today I went to the SD STEM Conference in Huron, SD. There were many great sessions, but the ones that interested me the most were the ones with the idea of standards based grading (SBG) or target based grading (TBG). I have never really been exposed to this kind of grading, since none of my teachers have used it. If you’re not familiar with SBG or TBG, standard based learning has to do with grading based on the standards and not as much on necessarily getting the right answer. Target based learning is very similar to standard based grading, but it mostly breaks down the standards into smaller “targets”. These two grading systems are also usually out of a 4-point grading scale.

              The TBG session was given by Mr. Kreie. He has just started using this system this school year. He says that this kind of grading focuses on “I can…” and “I understand…” statements. He gives his students a quiz about every week or so and each one usually has one or two targets on it. He then scores his students a score out of 3. Any student who received less than a 3 is expected to retake the quiz, which requires the student to reflect on their mistakes from the original quiz. In order for a student to get an anything above a 3 (which can be translated to an A), they have to go above and beyond and do an enrichment task. These quizzes and enrichment tasks take up about 80% of the student’s overall grade.

              I really liked this idea of standards based grading or target based learning because of the fact that it focuses more on the standards and making sure that every student is understanding what they are doing and the process of their work. This kind of grading also leads to students being more aware of learning targets/standards and reflecting on what and how they are learning. Mr. Kreie says that he also sees way more students going to other students for help and they are actually teaching and learning from each other! TBG and the way Mr. Kreie uses it also lessens the test anxiety for his students, since they aren’t taking tests and they can always retake a quiz if they don’t get the grade they want. Overall, I think that SBG or TBG has so many benefits and lead to students learning so much more. I am convinced that this could be a great option for me and others too.