As I was deciding on what my topic would be for this blog-post I was researching different techniques of teaching math to students
using technology. I came across an article that had different ways of teaching
math lessons using different forms of technology. The first tip it gave was to
send weekly extensions of the math curriculum via text messages to students.
When I initially read this sentence it alarmed me, because it meant that I
would have all my students’ cell phone numbers and they would have mine as
well. I did not know how comfortable I would feel doing that, since nowadays
you hear so much about inappropriate student-teacher relationships. However,
when I continued reading it gave an alternative to the text messages, which was
to do it through emails. I do not see this as being a big issue, since emails
are so common and it does not involve having everyone’s cell phone numbers.
The article then began to mention how to teach certain
lessons using technology. The first lesson was teaching angles. A fun way to
teach this would be to set up a scavenger hunt for the students and give them
disposable cameras to take pictures of their answers. I thought this was a fun
idea, because it is a different approach to the standard form of teaching and
it gets the students engaged in a fun activity. It then mentioned teaching
multiplication tables using an interactive whiteboard. It stated that students
would have the opportunity to come up and group different shapes to show a
multiplication problem. Again, this seems like a good idea because it takes
away from having the teacher do all the teaching, and gives students the opportunity
to explore new concepts and help their fellow peers. This also gets younger
kids interested in math, and it can make it more fun for them because they are
able to interact with their math problems. The students will see the concept
not as a new math technique, but rather a game.
I agree that a teacher should not create a lesson plan that requires students and teachers to text message each other. There are so many stories on the news about teachers being involved with students, that texting would cross the line of a teacher-student relationship. Also, students need to see their teachers as people with authority; they need to have respect for them. I believe that if students were to text their teachers, that they would treat the assignment as if they were texting a friend.
ReplyDeleteHowever, let’s hypothetically say that a teacher did create such a lesson plan, the teacher must take into consideration that not every student owns a cell phone, especially in the younger grades. Also, even if students do own a cell phone, many of them might not have a text messaging plan that would allow them to participate in the activity. As a teacher, you couldn't possibly penalize a student for not participating, but then again, you also could not give them credit.
I love the idea of using games with mathematics. Math is so often taught as a lecture where the students just copy notes off of the board. I think this is what gives students a bad feeling about math in general. If more teachers were using games as the ones above, students would be more excited to participate in the class and learn the material. Of course combining technology with a game is a great idea. However, it is possible to think of interactive activities that do not involve technology as well.
ReplyDeleteI agree, i feel like i would be very uncomfortable with my students having my phone number. My email on the other hand is a different story. I personally feel email is a tad more professional and it will allow students to behave and act more professionally. The games that you planned were adorable and fun sounding. I always enjoyed teachers who involved fun with lessons. I felt i learned more that way. To add fun to a math lesson is even better! i think this is a great idea.
ReplyDeleteAntonietta, I really like this idea with the games used in the pedagogy of math! I think that it definitely would have attracted my attention more in my former math classes. I am happy that the idea you found about sending the students different problems via text messaging had the alternative to do it through emails. I would also feel uncomfortable knowing that all my students have my phone number. By doing this through email though, I think that this is not only useful, but safe and harmless to the teacher!
ReplyDelete