Weekly Report & Reflection Week #3

I think the most important thing I learned this week was an interesting variety of teaching methods. This was true of the various presentations I witnessed, both in class and on line. Teaching mathematics is difficult. Lessons require careful planning, as the content being explained must be delivered with precision. Therefore trying to explain similar content in a variety of ways is a challenge to the requirements of rigour and creativity. I thought that  Dan Meyer's talk at Cambridge was an excellent example of how to incorporate these latter attributes into a comprehensive lecture. Meyer's lecture employs technology, class participation, and group collaboration, in an engaging and informative manner. At his talk in Cambridge, Meyer uses video technology to provide visual images for the construction of the 'penny pyramid'. This is an entertaining presentation, capturing the viewers attention immediately. Meyer follows up the presentation by allowing the class to ask their own question about the video. This is an interesting technique, as it allows the students to participate in formulating the problems they would like to assess and find solutions for. This is important as it makes the questions more meaningful to the students as well as being pertinent to their curiosities. Meyer continuously keeps the class engaged by asking them for estimations, encouraging discussion between students, and by slowly and clearly unraveling the solutions to the students' initial questions. The result is an interactive, engaging, and, significantly, educational lecture on mathematics.

It would seem that Dan Meyer is a quintessential mathematics teacher. He is knowledgeable, patient, and creative. Furthermore, he incorporates technology into his classroom with relative ease and makes learning mathematics a fun and participatory engagement. Meyer exemplifies what it means to be a good mathematics teacher, as he allows the class to develop their questions and understanding of the material, acting as a guide that facilitates their journeys to various solutions. I think that much can be learned from Meyer's approach to teaching mathematics. In particular, I admire his ability to get the class invested in mathematical problems so that they are always interested and engaged in a community setting.  This latter aspect is a nice change from the traditional setting of mathematics, which tend to be isolating and drab (i.e. A student staring at a problem on a piece of paper by themselves with a pencil). Meyer's strategies to teaching provide an excellent example as to what it means to be a successful mathematics teacher. I have learned a significant amount from him regarding teaching style and methodology which I will attempt to incorporate in my future lectures.