Entrance Slip Oct 5th

1. How these ideas interact with your own hopes and concerns about taking up the profession of teaching.

When teaching this previous year, I was sometimes nervous to take students outdoors, play sports with them, or do unconventional activities. I wasn't sure if the principal or admins would allow that due to safety policies etc. However, reading the article has given me a sense of optimism and excitement that these activities are actually good practices for students, and help with student concentration and engagement. It allows them to explore mathematics in the real world, making the subject more enjoyable.

2. What images and metaphors you take away from the reading.

The metaphor "dancing teachers into being with a garden" from the title really resonates with me. I think it is a pretty cool metaphor and symbolizes a more creative, playful, adaptable, and less rigid approach to teaching. As prospective math teachers who used to be students, we often see math class as standard, with the teacher teaching the content and then students working on practice problems. This metaphor suggests that we can deviate from that and suggests that we explore more creative ways to teach in the classroom.

3. Things you agree and disagree with, wonder about and/or can extend to other ideas about teaching in a fast-changing and uncertain world.

Overall, I agree with the article's main point, in the sense that math teachers need to practice more creativity and need to be less rigid in the classroom. The stereotype that math class is doing problems and chugging numbers at a desk in the classroom needs to change.

On the other hand, I believe that there are certainly restrictions on what a teacher should and shouldn't do in a math class. The article mentions napping, dreaming, and sewing as some possible activities for students in class. Perhaps it may be something to consider for an elementary classroom, but in the secondary curriculum, mathematics is more rigorous and there is more content to cover. That being said, class should be a good use of time and should be relevant and working toward completion of both the course content and curricular competencies. Personally, I would not force activities into the curriculum or lesson plan which I don't seem fit or that I feel is not sufficiently relevant and helpful.

Sept 28th Exit Slip

 In class today, we covered serveral topics, mostly about students and the classroom environment. The two main questions we discussed about are "how to support students and ourselves with the anxieties of our times" and "what are some implicit stories and assumptions in the classroom?" 

To answer the first question, one way to support students and ourselves in the classroom is to have  self-reflection. For students, reflection helps them ponder on the issues both they and the world around them face, as well as alert the teacher in the issues they may currently be facing. On the other hand, reflecting as a teacher allows us to make changes in our daily lives and work on areas we need to work on. The first step to solving a problem is to know what the problem is. After that, it is important as a teacher to be mindful and knowledgeable of the school's resources in helping students with their various problems. Sometimes, we just aren't sufficiently equipped to handle their problems ourselves, and thus we need external resources. That being said, the big takeaway for me is to be mindful of what is going around me, both as a teacher as an individual.

One of the biggest false assumptions I get a lot as a teacher and a student in the past is that a person is either good at math or not. I get that a lot from peers, colleagues, and students around me. What many people do not understand is that there are so many areas of math. For me in particular, I dislike statistics, but I enjoy discrete mathematics and abstract algebra. For students, some may be good at one aspect of math but dislike another. It is important for schools and math teachers to teach this, as many students believe that whether math is for them is a black and white concept. Students need to udnerstand that there is more than one way of doing math and so many branches to explore. The whole idea of math being either only liked or disliked (and nothing in between) is very demotivating and detrimental to students. When students believe that they are bad at something, they stop putting in effort and begin to perform worse, even if they weren't doing bad to begin with. As a prospective teacher, I hope to get this messafge across to students, that math is diverse and that there are many areas of explore, that some may interest you and others may not.

Entrance Slip Sept 28

 1) What is our responsibility as educators as we help to raise and teach new generations to be leaders in our contemporary and future world?

It is our responsibility as educators to raise awareness of things that may be problems for the next generation and future leaders. Climate change, in particular, is one of the problems that our next generation will be combatting. That being said, new generations need to be informed and prepared for the problems the future holds, and need to know ways they can help and take action now.

2) Are we (as a society and as people) capable of making changes to the ways our subjects were ‘traditionally’ taught to us? If so, what are your thoughts on the suggested changes here? And if not, what is the fate of our world?

As teachers, we certainly have power to change how our subjects were traditionally taught. Referring to the article, I have no doubt that it is important to raise awareness in schools about problems like climate change. Students can definitely be more mindful of the situation. The author mentioned the three principles that are meant to guide educators in creating meaningful mathematics lessons in regards to climate change, them being forms of authenticity, forms of participation, and reflecting on and in mathematics. The forms of authenticity and the reflecting on and in mathematics areas are good ways to implement application based questions (especially in classes like statistics or Calculus), allowing students to be doing the curriculum's content while being aware of the problem of climate change. However, I believe that the forms of particpation area is not really meant to take place in the classroom. Teachers can surely mention and advocate for students taking action and engaging in raising awareness and public debates, but whether the students decide to participate and take action is their choice.

3) What are your personal thoughts and feelings about global climate change in our times?

I can say that I am concerned and responsible for climate change in our times. I realize that there is a huge responsibility and environmental impact of my actions. Even me taking public transit affects the environment and climate change. Overall, I have a desire to make the environment a better place and will support the cause in whatever means necessary.

Sept 21st Exit Slip

Having done arts and craft in class today, I personally am finding it hard to incorperate it into my secondary level math class. I think it would be a great idea for elementary level math, but I do not think there is sufficient time in class and am finding it hard to relate it to Precalculus for instance. However, I do appreciate outdoor learning. Students in particular do not like sitting in class and sometimes need to release their energy, and outdoor learning is a great way to teach the class content while students get some fresh air, sun, and get to experience nature. When I was teaching AP Calculus, the students asked if they could do it outside because the weather was beautiful, and I said sure. It was a different but nice experience. As mentioned in class, it is sometimes nice for students to make decisions for their own learning. In the future, I do plan to incorporate outside learning from time to time when the weather permits.

Entrance slip reading and viewing for Thurs Sept 21

Reading the article has really helped me reflect on the consumer lifestyle we have been living in. Nowadays, it is true that kids are spoiled and take things for granted. This is because we can get anything we want when we want it, and if we don't, we complain about it. Another thing I found interesting in the article was the author's mention of how a community garden can help us "relearn lost skills, unventing ancestral knowledge and technologies we are in risk of losing." As a cook myself, I can say that people are losing touch of the skill of cooking as well. There are very few people I know my age who knows how to cook, and I find that kind of sad. Cooking is an important life skill, and we cannot rely on our parents to cook for us, nor can we rely on eating out. Similarly, it is important to keep the knowledge and skills our ancesters have used, as we never know when we may need it. Lastly, I like how the author talks about the emotional boost of doing the job yourself. As a cook, I grow my own herbs, and I believe that it is the best way to do it. Produce outside is expensive and uses unhealthy preservatives to help the food last. There is no better feeling than growing and making your own food from scratch. Indeed, it does give an emotional boost and makes you feel accomplished.

I myself am not gifted in arts, including arts and craft, but I found those videos very cool. It is incredible how humans were able to come up with such cool techniques and patterns by only using nature and their surroundings. However, I am not quite sure how I would use this in a secondary mathematics class. I am going to need further explanation on how this can be tied into class and how it can tie into the curriculum. 

Thinking about learning gardens

In the reading, I found it interesting how the garden/outdoors was described as a co-teacher, in the sense that it provides an outlet for experiential learning and interaction with the natural world. I think it is a really cool concept. There are many benefits of teaching outdoors. Teaching in the garden is also a great way to foster community building and alleviate the stress and anxiety that students may have in the classroom.  In addition, outdoor learning allows for students to develop an appreciation for nature and our surroundings. However, I do have a couple concerns about working outdoors, some of which are weather conditions, distractions and classroom management. Sometimes, students can be overly excited and easily distracted with their peers. Loud noises from surroundings also can serve as distractions that can sideline students from learning.  With Vancouver especially being cold and raining all the time, outdoor learning can also be difficult and uncomfortable. Regardless, I think these things are manageable. Having the outdoors is an option if the weather is nice and the location is manageable (not too noisy). Addressing classroom management, that is something that any teacher has to develop over time through experience and practice. 

In math, there are a lot of applications and hands on activities that can be done outdoors. Some examples include geometry, trigonometry, measurements, data analysis, etc. I would probably assign mini group projects/assignments outdoors for students. This will give students the opportunity to problem solve and build their critical thinking skills while collaborating and building teamwork. 

Entrance Slip 2023-09-14

Overall, I agree with Grant and Zeichner that reflective teaching is of paramount importance for teachers. When I was working under an LOP, I constantly self-evaluated myself. At the end of each day, I would look for what went well, terribly, and what can be improved. 

For example, one of the games I have used as a teacher for review is Jeopardy. The first time we played the game, students in teams of 5 would discuss the question and then send a representative to answer it. During the game, no matter how much I encouraged collaboration, students would sent their strongest member to solve all the problems. This certainly did not help student learning, especially for the students who were weaker at math. That night, I spent time reflecting on how the game could be improved. I thought to myself, “how do I get every student in every team involved, learning, and helping each other?” Then it dawned on me. The next time we played Jeopardy, I had the students broken up into teams and number themselves 1 through 5. I gave students more amount of time to answer the questions, but there was a twist. When time was up, I would call a random number between 1 and 5, and the student with the corresponding number had to answer the question on the board with full working. This enhanced the collaborative learning experience, as stronger students needed to help weaker students understand the thought process and steps behind each question.

Although this is an old article, I feel like it still applies to teachers today. Throughout my 1.5 years of teaching, I found that collaborating with and observing other teachers was extremely helpful in my self-evaluation. Being able see how other teachers taught allowed me to take the things I liked and mold my own teaching style. Teaching is a life-long learning process, and there is always something new to learn from our fellow teachers, peers, and students as well. Lastly, one of the things Grant and Zeichner mentioned that I never thought of was keeping a teaching journal. The good thing about keeping a teaching journal is that we can always look back, identify areas of improvement/growth, record ideas, provide insights, and even increase self-awareness and observational skills in the classroom. Teaching journals can also serve as a means that helps with critical thinking and problem solving in the classroom. Moving forward, I will consider keeping a teaching journal for better reflective practice.

Exit Slip 2023-09-07

In the beginning of the video, Frank mentions the two schools of thoughts of teaching: being a friend to the students versus being the authoritarian teacher. Our group had a long discussion about finding the balance between the two. Are they mutually exclusive? How do you balance the two? This was a big struggle of mine from my 1.5 years of teaching experience under an LOP. As a young teacher, I was very active and friendly with students. I would play chess, table tennis, and soccer with them as well as engage in casual conversations outside of class. However, doing so also undermined my authority in the classroom as a teacher, as students sometimes interrupts and talked to me without respect, as if I was a friend of theirs. Through my experience, I realized that I've gotten off on the wrong foot and realized the importance to getting the students to differentiate in-class time and out-of-class time. For the future, I realized that it is important to set a more "serious" and "authoritarian" tone for classroom time and teaching. However, it is also okay to keep it casual outside of class, showing the students that you as a teacher care for them. It is similar to the parental role, where there are times to be fun and show compassion, but also times to show tough love.