My Future Classroom
Imagining my future classroom and what practices I instill and promote in it is important for how my students will develop their literacy in mathematics. What many probably do not realize is just how much reading and writing occur in mathematics, and the different form of literacy required to be considered proficient in certain disciplines of math. At the high school level of mathematics, students are expected to have a foundation of basic algebraic terms and geometric identities that many would consider a head start into a disciplinary literacy, or literacy skills that are specialized to a certain discipline or subject matter (Shannahan and Shannahan, 2014, p.44). Providing supplemental material that anchors mathematical concepts using relevant, interactive multimedia and application of concepts to other disciplines will allow students to feel a greater sense of inclusion and foster the growth of mathematical literacy in my future classroom.
Sitting in a high school calculus classroom, I remember the feeling of uncertainty pervading the room on the first day of class. Thoughts of how hard this year’s math was going to be, whether the concepts would catch on quickly or leave us in the dust, invisibly solidified the stance of the students as the teacher walked to the board to begin the first lesson.
Anxiety, anticipation, and apprehension are feelings we all remember having in math, but confidence, clarity, and comprehension? Our personal fables told us by our adolescent, egocentric mindsets led us to believe that our plight was unique, that our feelings were unappreciated by others in the room (Durwin, 2017, p.218). When the students enter the classroom, they should confidently carry their previous knowledge and experiences around their neck like a pair of binoculars, ready to examine the landscape of math in preparation for an adventure. My role as a teacher is to create an environment that promotes the individuality of each student and the arsenal of knowledge they come to class with. In the story “I’m Not a Pencil Man” by Knobel, student Jacques comes to class with a plethora of business related knowledge, but finds that this knowledge is unable to transfer to the mathematical lessons and concepts presented by the teacher (Knobel, 2011, p.166). Acknowledging and providing opportunities for students like Jacques to showcase their out of classroom experiences and abilities will strengthen conceptual ties and open up a dialogue between students, where they can practice their social skills. Once the classroom becomes a place where students can easily and confidently interact with each other and me about the course material, the quality of time spent in the classroom and on each lesson increases.
In subjects like science and language it’s not too rigorous to find applications of concepts previously learned to other disciplines in school and the real world. Everyone reads and writes, and even the scientific method is riddled in society, but how is math like calculus used in today’s world? If we redefine text to include mathematics, we find that vocabulary and problem solving are part of other discipline-specific literacies that our mathematics classroom also requires (Smagorinsky, 2014, p.81–82). As our increasingly specialized society becomes more interconnected and interdependent, having multiple literacies, including a mathematical one, is common and important. By taking advantage the literacies students have acquired and practiced outside of my calculus classroom, I can present material in many different formats and use multiple forms of multimedia to resonate with more students and build up their mathematical literacy. As stated by Mos Def in his song “Mathematics”, “Young bloods can’t spell but they could rock you in PlayStation…. you wanna know how to rhyme you better learn how to add, It’s mathematics”. To become proficient at rhyming and rapping, MC’s have to learn how to add, in order to build bars, lines, and intersperse them into a beat. Language, music, and math all tied together in something as simple as creating a rap song. I would have students using math in every conceivable scenario, and find everyday situations which can be innovated and improved by a stronger grasp of math.
Some concepts in math are more challenging to relate to students and made applicable to the real world, like the concept of limits. While some students may understand the concept of a limit in the definition of the word, others may need alternate explanations that take the textbook definition and breathe new life into the meaning. Math websites like www.mathisfun.com put mathematical concepts into smaller, bite sized pieces that only take a quarter of an hour to digest. For example, the way that mathisfun.com approaches limits is much more relatable than a normal textbook.
They do an excellent job incorporating images and color into their lesson, making the process feel more like a game than a math lesson. Since mathematics has been an academic hurdle for many past students, interactive websites and multimedia have sprung up to educate in more connected ways. But in my future classroom, mathematics will no longer be a hurdle, rather it will become a tool students will use to perceive and study the world around us.
Works Cited
Durwin, C. C. (2017). EdPsych modules. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
[FleryCz]. (2009, July 1). Mos Def — Mathematics [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5vw4ajnWGA.
Knobel, M. (2011). I’m Not a Pencil Man. In Literacies: Social, Cultural and Historical Perspectives (pp. 163–179). New York, NY: International Academic.
Limits (An Introduction). (n.d.). Retrieved June 11, 2017, from https://www.mathsisfun.com/calculus/limits.html
Shanahan, T., & Shanahan, C. (2008). Teaching Disciplinary Literacy to Adolescents: Rethinking Content- Area Literacy. Harvard Educational Review,78(1), 40–59.
Smagorinsky, P. (2014). Teaching dilemmas and solutions in content-area literacy, grades 6–12. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin, a SAGE Company.
