Reflecting on Teaching and Learning Mathematics

1
Reflecting on Teaching and Learning Mathematics

• Seán Delaney
• Coláiste Mhuire Marino
• July 1st to 7th 2004

2
Overview of Day 1

• Introductions and warm-up activity
• Journals
• Comment cards
• Reflection on own experiences of learning
  mathematics
• Work of a mathematician
• BREAK
• Children and mathematics
• Individual differences in teaching mathematics
• Introduction to place value

3
Introductions and Warm-up Activity

• Card games
• ___
• Introductions
• Mathematics to me
• What would you most like to get out of the
  course?

4
Journals

• Central goals of the course
• September is a long way off!
• Other teachers have considered the problems
  before
• Document thinking and learning
• Newspaper cutouts, samples of childrens work
  with comments, reflections on the activities,
  notes on the activities and how you might use
  them in your class, questions you have, a
  question you would like to investigate in your
  teaching next year.

5
Comment Cards

• Let me know how you are finding the course
• All feedback welcome
• Will be read and considered at the end of each
  day of the course

6
Reflection on Experiences of Learning Mathematics

• What are your memories of how you learned
  mathematics?
• What relationship do you see between how you
  learned mathematics and how you teach the
  subject?
• How did you learn to teach mathematics?

7
Work of a mathematician

• Fermats Last Theorem
• Solved by Andrew Wiles
• Very Difficult Mathematics
• What is similar about Wiless work and the work
  of children in primary school?
• JOURNAL
• What aspects of a mathematicians life/work is
  shown in the video?

8
Aspects of a Mathematicians Work Seen in the
Video

• Time is spent working alone
• Discussing, collaborating and consulting with
  others is essential
• Sometimes you work at length to find a solution
  to a problem, not knowing if one exists
• Even mathematicians sometimes don't understand
  things and find mathematics difficult
• In solving problems, connections need to be made
  between different areas of mathematics
• Looking for patterns is essential
• New mathematics is still being 'discovered'
• It is difficult to work at something if you don't
  know what it's for (fall-off in graduates'
  attendance at 'special' lectures)
• Success is satisfying and joyful
• Mistakes are part of doing maths
• Solving a problem is like a bright light being
  turned on.
• Where did he get his motivation? His imagination
  was captured at a very young age.

9
BREAK!