Approach

Both experience and education have inspired me to move away from procedural knowledge, and explicitly teaching students shortcuts. My intention is to teach students how to think critically, how to problem solve, and how to use resources. To this end, I utilize challenging non-computational questions during weekly group tasks, where students must rely on each other and work together to construct and justify their conceptual explanations.

I find it beneficial to increase student-teacher dialogue via weekly exit tickets. Additionally, there is sustaining value in soliciting justification from students outside of the weekly group work. Instead of simply asking what the answer is, I ask a follow up question such as, “How do you know?” This manner of inquiry becomes a reciprocal process whereby the student is able to grasp deeper concepts, and I, simultaneously, become better able to convey the material in a manner that enables them more easily to do so.

Further, this affords an opportunity to teach the entire class what many may not know by sussing out common assumptive errors, and again, my own failings with the presentation of a particular lesson plan. Finally, it is crucial to establish and consistently reinforce a safe and supportive classroom environment, as we expect students to feel comfortable taking risks both with building relationships and in offering their mathematical insights.