I have always enjoyed learning math, however, I know it tends to be the least favorite subject of many students. Throughout my experience in the UTeach program, I have learned that there is more than one way to teach a subject other than the traditional lecture and note taking. I want students to engage with the material and explore its different applications. That is why my teaching style includes a constructivist approach, supports the idea of a growth mindset and utilizes the concept of responsive teaching. I want my students to find mathematics to be meaningful to them, to not be discouraged when the material is challenging, and to have more autonomy in their own learning. Alfie Kohn criticizes behaviorism and instead believes that constructivism is the right approach when it comes to teaching. In this approach, students have an active role in their learning, and knowledge is taught in a context and for a purpose. Kohn’s theories are helpful to teachers because it reminds them that student motivation should not just be about grades. Instead, their motivation should stem from their own interest in what they are learning, which can be achieved by having an active role in their own learning and seeing that what they are learning will be helpful to them in the future. I hope to give my students a more active role in their learning and share important applications that can later be useful to them.
Many early theorists of learning had a nature perspective and supported the idea a fixed mindset. On the contrary, people such as Carol Dweck believed in a growth mindset, in which all students are capable of being successful. It is a helpful concept for teachers to keep in mind when they are teaching, because it can motivate their students to work harder in order for them to achieve their goals. Teachers can encourage their students to have a growth mindset so that their learning can be intrinsic and they can be motivated rather than discouraged by challenges, setbacks, and criticism. Students are motivated when they know that someone believes in them, not when they feel that a teacher has given up on them. I want my students to know that I believe they can be successful and that it is up to them to want to work hard for it.
The concept of responsive teaching, as explained by David Hammer and Emily van Zee, is when a teacher pays careful attention to the reasoning of their students, which helps give insight into their thinking process. Responsive teaching is helpful because it makes students more active and engaged in their learning. Also, it helps teachers see what common misconceptions about a concept exist and decide what areas their students tend to be less strong in and should spend more time on. It is important to keep in mind that the students in a classroom will not all be at the same level so responsive teaching in the form of discussions helps break down big concepts in order to help students understand more and even learn from each other. I hope to encourage this is my math classrooms, since I have seen the value of learning from your peers.
From my experience at UTeach, learning about different ways of teaching and engaging students has made the biggest impact on me. I never thought a discussion, a debate, or a group project with a presentation could be done in a math class to engage students yet I have done all those things. I want to show my students that math does not have to be about memorization and “getting the right answer.” I want them to see that math can be meaningful to them, that they are all capable of being successful in my classroom and that their voice matters just as mine does in the classroom. I came into UTeach because I wanted to be a math teacher who inspired her students to love math and now I have many tools and strategies to achieve that.