Making connections becomes increasingly important as students proceed through middle school and high school. This book shows ways of embedding connective processes in instruction in grades 9-12. Problems invite mathematical modelling, unify diverse content, call for different representations and encourage students to look back at their work to find connections. Activities feature such tasks as determining a dosage schedule for a prescription drug, making ""transit graphs"" to maximise travel through a canal and deciding when to accept a ""double dare"" in a simple game. The supplemental CD-ROM features interactive electronic activities, master copies of activity pages for students and additional readings for teachers.
The activities in this book introduce students to simple random sampling, sampling techniques and simulation as a tool for analysing both categorical and numerical data. Scenarios probe topics of interest to high school students, including possible workplace discrimination against women and links between vegetarian diets and blood cholesterol levels. As students work, they learn what makes a well-designed study; how to distinguish among observational studies, surveys and experiments; and when statistical inference is permissible. The supplemental CD-ROM features interactive electronic activities, master copies of activity pages for students and additional readings for teachers.
Teaching Mathematics in Grades 6 - 12 by Randall E. Groth explores how research in mathematics education can inform teaching practice in grades 6-12. The author shows preservice mathematics teachers the value of being a "researcher—constantly experimenting with methods for developing students' mathematical thinking—and connecting this research to practices that enhance students' understanding of the material. Ultimately, preservice teachers will gain a deeper understanding of the types of mathematical knowledge students bring to school, and how students' thinking may develop in response to different teaching strategies.
Why does it matter whether we state definitions carefully when we all know what particular geometric figures look like? What does it mean to say that a reflection is a transformation—a function? How does the study of transformations and matrices in high school connect with later work with vector spaces in linear algebra? How much do you know… and how much do you need to know? Helping your students develop a robust understanding of geometry requires that you understand this mathematics deeply. But what does that mean? This book focuses on essential knowledge for teachers about geometry. It is organised around four big ideas, supported by multiple smaller, interconnected ideas—essential understandings. Taking you beyond a simple introduction to geometry, the book will broaden and deepen your mathematical understanding of one of the most challenging topics for students—and teachers. It will help you engage your students, anticipate their perplexities, avoid pitfalls, and dispel misconceptions. You will also learn to develop appropriate tasks, techniques, and tools for assessing students’ understanding of the topic. Focus on the ideas that you need to understand thoroughly to teach confidently. Move beyond the mathematics you expect your students to learn. Students who fail to get a solid grounding in pivotal concepts struggle in subsequent work in mathematics and related disciplines. By bringing a deeper understanding to your teaching, you can help students who don’t get it the first time by presenting the mathematics in multiple ways. The Essential Understanding Series addresses topics in school mathematics that are critical to the mathematical development of students but are often difficult to teach. Each book in the series gives an overview of the topic, highlights the differences between what teachers and students need to know, examines the big ideas and related essential understandings, reconsiders the ideas presented in light of connections with other mathematical ideas, and includes questions for readers’ reflection.
This volume contains the papers presented at the International Conference on Challenges in Mathematics Education for the Next Decade held from September 10-15, 2017 in Balatonfüred, Hungary. The Conference was organized by The Mathematics Education for the Future Project – an international educational project founded in 1986.
In grades 3-5, students extend their understanding of place value, larger whole numbers, fractions and decimals. They develop an understanding of multiplication and division, mastering and applying basic facts. Concrete materials can help students represent and reinforce these important concepts. Activities in this book invite students to use fraction circles to compare fractions and dot arrays to explore multiplication and the distributive property.
