Equity

Today in my "Diversity and Equity in Math Education" class, we talked about the difference between equality and equity. One of the students in my class mentioned at quote she heard at a presentation as a metaphor for equality and equity:

"Equality is everyone getting a pair of shoes. Equity is everyone getting a pair of shoes that fits them."

I think this is an excellent way to look at equity in all aspects of life. In education, equality means everyone getting the same information. Equity means each student getting the information in a way that is meaningful for them. This is extremely important for all students, but I don't think that teachers do a very good job of it because they don't know how to implement equity strategies.

The class I'm taking right now is EXTREMELY helpful in allowing me to think about differences I may experience between my students and myself, and it gets me thinking about what I can do to use those differences to help students learn. Another graduate student in the Math Education program said that when she was beginning to teach, she assumed that all of her students would be like her. Then, when she got in the field, she was incredibly surprised when her students were so diverse. I think that all pre-service teachers should take a class like my Diversity and Equity class in order to prepare them for what they will encounter in the classroom.

Not only do teachers need to consider the issues of equity they will face, they need to be prepared to deal with them. Again, during their education, teachers should take a class like the one I'm in to help them prepare. In addition, schools should have professional development workshops for teachers to participate in to discuss equity issues they experience in their classrooms and learn from the experiences of others. Also, if teachers are required to present a workshop or do some research on a certain minority group and present the challenges they face when learning to their colleagues, they will learn from each other as well as learning from research they perform.

Equity issues occur in every classroom across the country. Teachers need to learn about these issues and how to alleviate them in their classrooms. This education should continue even when they are teaching in schools. With a continued education about equity issues, I believe teachers will be able to better handle them in their own classes.

Student Interviews and Children's Literature

Student Interviews

In one of my classes today, we watched an interview of a student and a teacher. The teacher had the student complete the following problem:

Blocks measure 1 1/2 inches on each side. A cube 1 foot wide, 1 foot long, and 1 foot high is made of these cubes. How many little blocks are in the large cube of blocks?

The important concepts in this problem are apparent: volume, scaling, conversions. As the student worked through the problem, the teacher asked questions about what she was thinking and how to go on from there.

I think student interviews are a great assessment method! While watching this interview, it was very clear what the student understood about the problem, as well as what she understood about numbers and operations too. Also, it was very clear what she did not understand. For example, the student was having a problem knowing how many blocks would fit along one side of the cube. The teacher tried to break it down in to "how many blocks fits in to three inches?," and the student understood that. But, she could not see that 1 foot was 12 inches, so she would use the same method as in the three-inch question to see how many blocks fit on one side. Also, the student clearly did not understand what the volume formula actually meant. She knew that she needed to use the formula, but she didn't know when to actually use it.

When interviewing a student, teachers need to be very careful about what they say. In the interview we watched, toward the end the interviewer told the student that there are 12 inches in a foot and pretty much led her to the answer. To truly use a student interview as a valid assessment method, teachers must only ask questions about what they are thinking or to explain their steps. Leading a student to the answer, while it helps them not struggle on this problem, does not show the teacher what the student knows. This can be really hard to do. I've noticed that while I tutor, I tend to lead them to the answer sometimes. I'll need to monitor this in myself this year in tutoring and working in the schools before having a class of my own.

I see myself using student interviews throughout the year. I think the best way to conduct these interviews is to set up stations around the room for students to work on problems and develop concepts. During that time, I can call up students to work a problem for me to see what they know. This takes them away from the rest of the students in a less-noticeable way. Plus, the rest of the students are engaging in worthwhile tasks!

Children's Literature

On another topic, another class I'm in requires us to develop an activity to go along with a children's book. I found a series about a character named Sir Cumfrence which deals with geometry concepts in the context of a knight and Medieval times. I was really excited when I discovered this series, and I plan on purchasing the books!

Children's literature is a great way to motivate students at the beginning of a lesson. Everyone loves children's books (even college students!), and there are many books out there that can be tied to math concepts for all ages. I can't wait to use this method in my classroom and will continue searching for books that relate to concepts that I will teach in high school.

Introduction

So, while reading in a textbook for a class, they mentioned how blogs can be used to get students to think about mathematics and express their views and opinions. I decided that I could really benefit from keeping a blog about my education in the field of Education, as well as what I do while I teach. It can be a resource to others (if anyone ever finds this...), and I can also use this in the future to keep track of what works, what doesn't, and what I've learned along the way.

I'm currently getting my Masters degree in Education from Virginia Tech. I graduated in May 2009 with a Bachelor's degree in Mathematics. I plan on teaching high school math when I finish my Masters in May. Right now, I'm enjoying classes and my last year before I venture out in to the "real world."

I hope this blog will help me to reflect on things I've read, things I've discussed in class, and other things I experience during my education. I plan to continue this on in to my teaching, and if all goes well, I may keep a blog for my students to keep up with! We will see how often I update this, but I can see this being a valuable tool for me on a daily basis, as well as on down the road.