Wednesday, September 16, 2009
My Blogs Start
I plan to use this blog as a place for students to discuss topics that I post. I think a lot of students get stuck with the idea that there is only one way of solving a problem (I teach high school math), and they do not realize that there are many different strategies to solve many different problems. I think it would be useful to post a problem, and allow students to post different strategies to solve the problem. Doing this will allow the students an opportunity to explore the material out of the textbook, they will be able to interact with each other about the material, and they will also have the chance to show off their knowledge in an anonymous fashion. I think the blog can enhance the lesson by allowing students to think about the material on their own, and at the same time it will allow students to see how other students perceive the material. This blog can provide an opportunity for me to see the abilities of my students regardless if they are shy or not. At the same time I am able to read how they are processing the material. I do wish that I had the ability to allow my students to type mathematical material into the blog, but I do not have a clue how. If anyone reads this and thinks of a way to do it, please let me know.
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I think you hit the nail on the head with your concern over being able to create math problems using modern day keyboards. Our math teacher is having the same problem. She makes sure to add links on her page that go to websites dealing with math. Maybe this page can be a way to discuss homework problems that give kids fits.
ReplyDeleteI think you have identified your main obstacle already. I don't know how to help you with it but hopefully someone else will!
ReplyDeleteHow motivated do you think your students will be to use the blog? Do you plan to grade contributions or keep it as enrichment? I fear if I don't grade it, they won't participate, but if make it a "must-do" it will become contrived.
To Chris,
ReplyDeleteDiscussing homework problems would be a good idea, but it would have to be something that I would be committed to check and work on everyday. Unfortunately, I don't know if I could do that. I would want to, but I couldn't be certain. I would hate to leave a student hanging on the blog. However, it might work to get help from peers, so it still might work even without me.
To Tracey,
At first, I don't think that the students will be that motivated. However, after some exposure to it, I think that they will accept it as another part of the classroom. I think that I would have to assign some kind of participation grade for it, so the student would feel compelled to post.