Math 371 Technology for STEM Educators

Artificial intelligence is starting to come across as a new challenge in math education. However, if you think about it, is this actually something new, or is it something the field has already seen before? The concerns around AI feel very similar to what people said when calculators were first introduced into classrooms, which makes this shift seem more familiar than it might appear at first. When calculators were first brought into schools, many educators were worried that students would rely on them too much and stop learning the basics. Over time, though, calculators became normal and are now seen as helpful tools instead of problems. AI seems to be heading in a similar direction. Even though it is more advanced, it is still just a tool that can either help students learn or hurt their understanding depending on how it is used. In math, AI can actually be useful. It can help with computations, walk through steps, and give quick feedback when students are stuck. That can make math m...

  In many of my more traditional math classes in the past, I have received feedback on my homework way too late. I would do all the homework problems on paper, turn them in, and then a few days later receive feedback. However, I often made the same mistake on every problem because I had no way of knowing I was doing it wrong. This means incorrect habits were being reinforced. Using technology in our classrooms can help eliminate this problem by providing students with instant feedback, helping to stop them from reinforcing incorrect habits. There are many different ways to offer instant feedback to students. One is using tools like Kahoot or Quizziz at the end of a class. You can make two or three problems, and the students can solve them after the lesson. These not only provide feedback to the students, but also to the teachers. It offers statistics saying which answers students got wrong, what they put instead, what percentage of the class got it right, and more. This means tha...

With a surge of AI on the rise, it has raised a lot of concern for the classroom. Though math teachers have dealt with AI tools that can solve math for some time, they have not dealt with AI tools that can create detailed work to pair with it too. This causes fundamental learning gaps in a person's education as they bypass the learning that comes from making mistakes and experiencing failure. So what exactly have we done to try to negate the negative effects while utilizing the greatest multitool made to date? Some educators have taken the stance of outright abolishing the use of AI for their course, others have tried to integrate some more restrictive usages, and a few even say "run wild" in hopes that learning will still be induced by failure to yield the same results as a learner previously did without using AI, compared to using AI. Though these three scenarios do not cover the entirety of what has been attempted, they cover a large portion of approaches. The issue wi...

One day in AP Calculus, I remember learning about the washer and shell methods for finding volumes of revolution. The process required us to look at a graph, imagine it rotating around an axis, and then sketch the resulting three-dimensional shape. For many of us, including myself, this was incredibly difficult. We weren’t just solving an equation; we were being asked to mentally construct a 3D object from a 2D image. I still remember my teacher saying, “I wish I had something better to help you visualize this.” Looking back, this would have been the perfect opportunity to use virtual or augmented reality in the classroom. As technology continues to advance, it is becoming increasingly integrated into our daily lives. Whether we see this as positive or negative, it is undeniable that students today are growing up surrounded by technology. Because of this, I believe educators have a responsibility to design learning experiences that connect with students’ everyday lives. VR has become...

       Teacher questions often shape the direction of learning in a mathematics classroom. In many cases, questions are used to guide students toward a specific answer or to check whether they understand a procedure. While these types of questions have a place in instruction, they do not always encourage students to think deeply about the mathematics they are learning. When teachers ask questions that prompt explanation, reasoning, and reflection, the classroom shifts from simply finding answers to making sense of ideas.      Thoughtful questioning can open space for students to explore their thinking. Instead of asking questions that only require a short response, teachers might ask students how they know something is true, why a particular method works, or whether there might be another way to approach the problem. These questions invite students to slow down and examine the reasoning behind their work. In doing so, students begin to see mathematics...

       In elementary school, I can recall using manipulatives for many different concepts that we learned. For example, we used “linking cubes” when learning to count and when first introduced to addition and subtraction problems. We also used “base-ten blocks” when discussing place value and small clocks when learning to tell time. These physical tools kept me more engaged and allowed me to better understand the topics we were discussing because I could visually see the concepts in front of me. However, I can rarely remember using manipulatives once I moved up into higher grade levels.       In middle school and high school math classes, it can be difficult to find ways to use manipulatives, especially if students have not been using them previously. Introducing virtual manipulatives could be the “bridge” that is needed to supply that visual picture for students. Rather than having to provide the physical tools for every student, going virtual co...

Gamification has a place in math education. I believe that making learning interactive and engaging can absolutely benefit students, especially in a subject that many already feel intimidated by. However, there is a clear line between using gamification as a tool and letting it take over the learning itself. After exploring platforms like Prodigy, I began to see how easily that line can blur. When I tried Prodigy myself, I expected to understand why it is so widely used in classrooms. At first, it feels engaging. The graphics are bright, the pace is quick, and there is always something happening. But after spending more time on it, I started to notice that the most motivating part of the experience was not the math. It was the rewards. Leveling up, earning coins, unlocking pets, and customizing characters quickly became the main focus. The math questions felt like short interruptions between rounds of gameplay rather than the purpose of the activity. That is where my frustration comes ...

There is no question that technology has transformed math classrooms for every grade level. Elementary through college, this change has been prevalent. But where is the line to draw? How much do we need to learn if technology can just do it for us? As a future math educator, these are questions I have been asking myself. How can I balance the use of technology to enhance learning and teach traditional skills? In math, technology isn’t necessarily good or bad. It all depends on situational awareness and how it is being used. On the positive side, technology can deepen understanding, especially with graphing and visual aids. This can help students see what they are solving and grow deeper conceptual understanding. For example, students can explore the relationship between a quadratic equation and its graph. They can observe transformations and their equations in real time instead of memorizing the quadratic equation. This can be good for them because it prioritizes understanding instea...

I have not always been the biggest fan of math. One of my first negative experiences was in my first-grade classroom. We had been instructed to complete 100 multiplication problems and if we could not do it in the 50-minute timeframe, we would forfeit recess and PE class that day. That made me and quite a few peers feel awful about math. It got better in second grade though! We had been using Rocket Math, and that competition really amped me up to get better at my quick math facts. However, heading into third grade we had to learn how to use a calculator. I was not a fan. I spent so much time mastering my math facts that the idea of using a calculator seemed ridiculous. I moved past this quickly though as we started working with some numbers that were much larger or more complex. Finally, in the fourth grade, I finally met my match, long division. I was sent home with an assignment of 1-50 odds, all of them being long division practice problems. The next day, I showed up and turned in ...

       A lot of people grow up thinking that math and art skills are things you are either born with or you are bad at forever. Phrases like “I’m not a math person” or “I can’t draw” are said so often that they rarely get questioned. This kind of fixed mindset turns struggle into failure instead of seeing it as a normal part of learning, and it affects how students engage in classrooms that increasingly rely on digital tools to teach complex ideas.      In math, confusion is often treated as a sign that someone is just not smart enough rather than proof that the material is challenging. Once students decide they are bad at math, they tend to avoid it, participate less, or rely on shortcuts. Tools like calculators, equation solvers, and AI can be helpful, but when they are used only to get quick answers, students miss the reasoning behind the math. This can reinforce the belief that real understanding is reserved for certain people rather than something...

          Flipped classrooms are starting to become more popular and advancements in technology are playing a factor in helping these stats continue to grow. Flipped classrooms are based on the idea of reordering or “flipping” the in-class and out-of-class activities students complete. Effective flipped classrooms utilize some form of lecture for students to do outside of class to better prepare them for what will be covered or demonstrated in class. Teachers can choose to create videos, assign readings, or combine both, and create some sort of comprehension check. With new ideas of technology constantly being introduced, the concept of flipped classrooms can become very beneficial for students, if used effectively. When students complete short videos or readings outside of class, it can allow for more collaborative learning inside the classroom. Students can work in groups and discuss what they learned from the assignment, complete problems from the mate...

     Productive struggle is often framed as something that happens away from technology, as if meaningful thinking only occurs when students are working with pencil and paper. In reality, struggle does not disappear in a technology-rich classroom. Instead, it changes shape. When digital tools are used thoughtfully, they can create conditions where students wrestle with ideas rather than bypass them.      Technology like Desmos, GeoGebra, and several others, have the potential to slow students down in productive ways. Instead of immediately confirming whether an answer is correct, dynamic visuals and interactive elements invite students to notice patterns, test assumptions, and reconsider their reasoning. They can help students work towards the correct answer on their own, rather than being only correct or incorrect. Students may adjust a slider, observe an unexpected change, and then pause to ask why the graph, shape, or simulation behaves the way it does. ...

I had thought about this since December, but didn't really work on it until the last minute. Yes, I am an extreme procrastinator. It helps me relate to my students! On January 7, as I was preparing the syllabus for the course management system, I decided to pull the trigger and gamify my course. It makes sense as the course is made up of projects that students need to complete, so having them earn a badge after each project is a good idea. I planned to give them digital badges, but the students were very excited about the idea of actual badges. Today I have been creating the badges in Canva, which really is a great program and easy to use. I got some advice from a friend who makes stickers and I just ordered them! They are supposed to arrive by Friday, and I am excited. While they have more than 6 projects, I decided to combine the first few assignments into one badge, called the Digital Citizen badge. Hopefully, you notice that the circle around the outside is two colors. This dar...

It's the day of your exam. You're palms get sweaty and your heart is racing as you flip through your notes, hoping that reading over them one more time will make them stick to your memory. You know you've got time to slow down and truly comprehend the material, but you're too anxious to bring yourself to do just that. You're back in high school and have an algebra exam coming up next class period. You are so focused and worried about it that there is little to no hope for learning to occur in your current class. Finally, you get to the exam just to find your mind blank as you helplessly stare at the squiggly lines and operations symbols in front of you. But you studied for days; there's no way you could be this unprepared for the test. All that studying and worry, all just to leave that classroom feeling helpless and like a failure.  This is the sad reality for many students when it comes to math. The idea of having to understand and solve math problems leaves...

       The way math is taught has changed plenty throughout the years, with new discoveries, new technologies, and new educational requirements. Even with those differences, there is one experience that all math teachers have, and that is answering the age old question, “Why do we have to learn this anyways?” Telling kids that they “simply must” never works, so what are we to say? Most of my teachers told us we will need it for college, for work, and just for everyday life. But the most memorable answer I received was, “You may not ever need this. If a stranger runs up to you and asks you to solve an algebraic expression, you should run. But at least you are learning valuable problem solving skills.” All these answers, however, seemed vague to me. As the impressionable teenager I was, their vague answers did not exactly pique my interest in my studies of mathematics. In fact, it made me think they mattered even less. The issue here is that what all those teachers sai...

In school, I’ve always heard students say, "When I am older, I am going to have a job that does not require math, so why do I need to be in this math class." If I am being honest, before deciding I would be a math teacher, I thought the same thing. Since deciding that I want to be a math teacher, I have been thinking about what I would say if students asked "when am I ever going to use this?". Why should my students care about a subject they "will not use” in the future? After a lot of thought, you still need basic math skills and critical thinking that this class teaches you, to be successful in the real world.  I would first tell my students that the more practice with basic math, the easier day-to-day life math is. The math done daily is primarily subconscious, like when shopping, counting money, time management, etc. For counting money, let's say we want 76 cents. To figure out how to get there subconsciously, we are using the formula 1x+5y+10z+25c=76. ...

With today’s technology, students have access to a variety of math-solving tools that can assist them in understanding and mastering mathematical concepts. Some teachers may worry that these tools encourage shortcuts, but when used correctly, they can be powerful learning aids. Many math tools, like GeoGebra and Desmos, provide interactive visual representations of equations, graphs, and geometric shapes. Instead of solving equations on paper, students can see how changes in variables affect graphs in real time. This helps them better understand mathematical relationships and patterns. Apps like Photomath break down problems into detailed steps. Instead of just providing an answer, they guide students through the entire process. This can help students understand the reasoning behind each step. Although Photomath and apps like it aren’t skilled in word problems, other tools such as ChatGPT and Google Gemini can take a word problem and guide students through the solution. One ch...

Making connections between math and other topics is a potent strategy for engaging students in math as future teachers. Math is frequently viewed as a stand-alone subject, but connecting it to science, art, history, and music makes it more interesting and meaningful. This method develops creativity and critical thinking, in addition to helping students understand how mathematics is used in everyday situations. Math is crucial to science. It is used to analyze data, predict outcomes, and resolve issues. Algebra, for example, aids in population growth predictions and chemical equation balancing. Students can observe how math is used in the real world when math is incorporated into scientific classes. Art also relies heavily on math in everyday life. To produce balanced designs, artists must employ symmetry, geometry and proportions. Students might investigate how artists such as Leonardo da Vinci enhanced their works by utilizing mathematical forms or the golden ratio. This enhances thei...

Whether it be elementary school, high school, or college level math, one sentiment reigns true for the vast majority of students – everyone hates word problems. Even for many people that consider themselves “math people” and enjoy solving math problems, the wordy questions tend to garner the most disdain. Why is that? I think that applying math to real life situations in the early years (kindergarten, first, second grade) is actually much more intuitive for kids than just working with numbers; because they aren’t yet familiar with words like addition and subtraction, using realistic scenarios that they would encounter such as giving or taking away every day items typically makes much more sense to them. However, as math gets more complex, that dynamic flips, and the abstract problems without a real-life connection become simpler and easier for students to grasp. At some point, story problems stop being a tool that helps students understand math and become an obstacle students must ov...

     Merriam-Webster's dictionary defines struggle as making strenuous or violent efforts in the face of difficulties or opposition. This doesn’t sound like something that would happen much in a classroom. I mean, violence is definitely not something I’d wish to see in a classroom. However, the reality is that struggle is an integral part of being a student.      For the sake of clarity, I should tell you, that the type of struggle that I’m referring to is productive struggle. The difference here is that productive struggle is where a student is actively engaging with a problem to push their understanding. Rather than facing a difficult situation and turning towards frustration and stagnation, which is how I’d describe unproductive struggle. Productive struggle is what can allow a student to take steps toward growth and understanding. This is because it builds resiliency, deepens understanding, and encourages a growth mindset.       Undo...