The Importance of Being an Effective Math Teacher, Week 2

Hi Everyone!

Today I will be posting a brief reflection regarding mathematics education at the Junior/Intermediate level and the approach that I will have to take in the classroom as a student teacher teaching math.

Generally, through my own experiences and conversing with others, math does carry a negative connotation as the subject that a lot of students are not interested in learning about. I have personally experienced many ineffective math teachers, and this allowed me to give math a terrible reputation as I simply did not understand what was being presented and 'sold' to me. As a student teacher, I will do everything I can to prevent this from happening with my own students.

I believe in order for me to become a good math teacher, there are many different approaches to take; the article 5 Important Characteristics to Become a Good Math Teacher is a great article to consult. Based on this article cited, a successful math teacher has:

1. Care and Concern: Sometimes the focus will have to be on the way students are learning as opposed to the content being taught. 
2. Approach: Encourage the students to continue with the math at hand even if they get it wrong. After all, sometimes the best way to learn is to make mistakes then try again!
3. Teaching Strategies: Learn a variety of ways to teach the subject to the students as no one learns the same way. 
4. Leadership: Be a good role model for the students, demonstrate a positive attitude and respect for everyone. 



Katic, K. © September 15, 2015.
Having Fun in Math Class.

5. Knowledge of Math: This allows for confident explanation of math, and students have the ability to trust the teacher if they are having any problems. 

Finally, I believe that any math teacher can make math fun! To the right I have included a photo taken during my own Teacher Education Math J/I Level Course. We were presented with a word problem and had to think of as many solutions to the problem as we could. Upon being slightly stumped, the instructor demonstrated many fun ways of finding solutions to the problem by using manipulatives. Then it dawned on me that, yes, math can be made fun, it just takes a good teacher and good strategies to make it happen. These strategies are ones that I will be able to implement in my classroom, as well as providing students with math problems attached to real photos. Sometimes, all it takes is seeing a photo of something interesting to get students motivated to solve the associated math problem. However, I am looking forward to learning more effective strategies for teaching math well.

Over the next few weeks of this course, my focus will involve expanding my mathematical knowledge within mathematical assessment, evaluation, and strategies in lesson planning based on the math curriculum. Additionally, there are many useful assessment guides within the assigned readings that I will be able to consult. The most important emphasis placed on mathematical evaluation is to remember that each student will learn differently and at their own pace, so it is critical to evaluate them in comparison to the curriculum and not in comparison to their peers.

References 

Small, M. (2013). Making Math Meaningful to Canadian Students, K-8. (2nd Ed.) Nelson Education. Toronto: Canada.
Zeiger, S. (2015). 5 Important Characteristics to Become a Good Math Teacher. Retrieved from http://work.chron.com/5-important-characteristics-become-good-math-teacher-8926.html