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eSN Special Report: The Interactive Math Classroom
Backed by high-quality teaching, technology can breathe life into abstract concepts
When students can manipulate the data on their handheld screen and see what effect these changes have in real time, math lessons become more relevant.
In Audrey Cucci’s math classes in Frankfort, N.Y., it’s not unusual to see students moving around the room, engrossed in conversation, sometimes even laughing—and generally having a good time.
No, her students aren’t slacking off; they’re actually deeply involved in their learning. Armed with collaborative handheld technology and an approach that incorporates problem solving within real-world scenarios, Cucci has managed to take a subject that students typically think of as dull and make it highly engaging and interactive. And the results speak for themselves: The number of Cucci’s students who are passing algebra has increased by nearly 20 percent.
“What was more important to me were the comments of my students—it’s not often that a kid walks into a math classroom and says, ‘This is cool,’” she said.
Cucci, who teaches at Frankfort-Schuyler Central High School, isn’t alone in her approach. Across the country, a movement is afoot to make math class more interactive, replacing problems on the chalkboard with tools and strategies that will capture students’ interest and make math come alive.
It’s no secret that math class often fails to elicit enthusiasm from students. Although hard-to-teach, hard-to-learn topics such as algebra can present challenges, technology tools exist that can help make learning a more engaging, and even fun, experience for students.
The kind of interactive classroom environment created by Cucci and others has the potential to transform math instruction nationwide. Incorporating technology products that help students visualize abstract problems in a real-world context can move math from a frustrating class to a potential career choice for students. And tools that enable students to collaborate and share ideas can kindle excitement and enthusiasm among both students and teachers alike.
That could be just the shot in the arm needed for U.S. math instruction. It’s been well documented that the United States ranked 24th among industrialized nations in the 2003 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), the last year the test was given in mathematics. In 2007, a different international exam—the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study, or TIMSS—found the average math achievement of U.S. fourth graders trailed that of eight other countries, and the average math scores of U.S. eighth graders trailed that of five other nations (all of them in Asia).
Students’ varied backgrounds are part of what complicates U.S. math instruction. For example, an increasing number of students are not native English speakers, so math teachers face a challenge before the math curriculum even enters the picture, said Mike Shaughnessy, president of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM).
“Technology can level that playing field; it can provide access for students from a wide variety of backgrounds,” he said. “In mathematics, there are just certain concepts that are sticky, that are tough, and they always have been. There are certain things that technology can really help with.”
(For more on NCTM’s support of interactive technology that can boost student engagement and achievement, see the sidebar “An essential tool for teaching.”)
No more ‘powering down’
Cucci uses the TI-Nspire Navigator system from Texas Instruments, which wirelessly connects students’ graphing calculators to each other and to a teacher’s computer, making it possible to have shared learning experiences.
2 Responses to eSN Special Report: The Interactive Math Classroom
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media4math
September 29, 2010 at 9:39 am
Media4Math (www.media4math.com) has just published an innovative series for Geometry that uses the TI-Nspire. The series, “Geometry Applications,” focuses on real-world applications of Geometry and uses the Nspire to explore and expand on k.ey concepts.
For more information (and a video preview), go to
http://media4math.com/GeometryAppsWebDemo2/Site/Media4Math.com.html.
media4math
September 29, 2010 at 9:39 am
Media4Math (www.media4math.com) has just published an innovative series for Geometry that uses the TI-Nspire. The series, “Geometry Applications,” focuses on real-world applications of Geometry and uses the Nspire to explore and expand on k.ey concepts.
For more information (and a video preview), go to
http://media4math.com/GeometryAppsWebDemo2/Site/Media4Math.com.html.
iHomeEducator
September 29, 2010 at 4:03 pm
Here are some quotes from teachers using our iPad, iPhone 4, and iPod Touch (4th generation) apps in schools
“I wanted to share iLiveMath with my students at school, but did not want to give them access to my iPad. My school has a Promethean Board so after collaborating with iHomeEducator we can now share the teaching content with all my kids using the projector! I teach several units wrapped around the theme of a continent. At this time we are studying Asia and have iLiveMath Animals of Asia as well as Entomology.” – Lisa White, 2nd Grade Teacher, LaSalle II World Language Academy, Chicago, IL
“We are always trying to find ways to get our students to use higher thinking skills to solve everyday problems in order to give them ownership to real life applications. We first purchased iLiveMath Ford Cars and really liked how it blends Math applications with history… We contacted iHomeEducator who worked with us to enhance their apps so that we can display the photograph and the word problems using our existing SMART board projectors. Now an entire classroom can benefit from the content and teachers are provided an answer key. My students love the iLiveMath Entomology app too. I would also like to say that iLiveMath apps provide a huge amount of content enriched vocabulary which has in turn extended a simple math lesson into several cross-curricular lessons. We have the entire iLiveMath series and look forward to more from iHomeEducator.” – Richard Stevens, Principal, Kitzmiller Elementary, Kitzmiller, MD
http://www.ihomeeducator.com/
iHomeEducator
September 29, 2010 at 4:03 pm
Here are some quotes from teachers using our iPad, iPhone 4, and iPod Touch (4th generation) apps in schools
“I wanted to share iLiveMath with my students at school, but did not want to give them access to my iPad. My school has a Promethean Board so after collaborating with iHomeEducator we can now share the teaching content with all my kids using the projector! I teach several units wrapped around the theme of a continent. At this time we are studying Asia and have iLiveMath Animals of Asia as well as Entomology.” – Lisa White, 2nd Grade Teacher, LaSalle II World Language Academy, Chicago, IL
“We are always trying to find ways to get our students to use higher thinking skills to solve everyday problems in order to give them ownership to real life applications. We first purchased iLiveMath Ford Cars and really liked how it blends Math applications with history… We contacted iHomeEducator who worked with us to enhance their apps so that we can display the photograph and the word problems using our existing SMART board projectors. Now an entire classroom can benefit from the content and teachers are provided an answer key. My students love the iLiveMath Entomology app too. I would also like to say that iLiveMath apps provide a huge amount of content enriched vocabulary which has in turn extended a simple math lesson into several cross-curricular lessons. We have the entire iLiveMath series and look forward to more from iHomeEducator.” – Richard Stevens, Principal, Kitzmiller Elementary, Kitzmiller, MD
http://www.ihomeeducator.com/