My Math Philosophy Statement

Here is my math philosophy paper:

Method of Teaching
I believe that children learn better in a problem solving classroom. In addition, direct teaching is needed when students are confused and learning new math vocabulary. I want students to discover the math concepts in fun ways and having them to think while they learn. The way I was taught, I only knew one way to do many math problems. When I came to a problem I had never seen before, I would get frustrated and would give up. I would give an answer to the problem to say I solved it even if my answer was wrong. In my classroom, I want to guide my students in learning math concepts. I want to build their communication and reasoning skills so that they can show people how they solve the problem and justify the answer. On the other hand, I believe that teaching math strategies explicitly in solving problems and summarizing the learning is a part of the math teacher’s role.

Teachers still need to be in control in keeping order but also knows what is going on in the learning community of their classroom. On Day One, the teacher teaches explicitly about the classroom norms, how grouping of students work, and how the students are to behave in class. The teacher and the students collaborate on how the learning environment is to be. They work together to create a peaceful, supportive, and respectful learning environment where everyone is safe to learn and take risks without negative feedback. The students are in control of on-task behavior, thinking and doing math activities, helping each other and asking questions to continue their learning.

As a math teacher, I will adapt and be flexible when instructing the best way for my students. I know what the best way is based on my assessing my students on their progress, process and responses to the learning. The best way is also using teaching strategies and best practices to engage students on their thinking and learning. I will teach various strategies so students can learn many ways to solve problems. When they come to a problem they have never seen before, they would have a toolkit of strategies they can use to solve the unfamiliar problem. I will be a model to my students as I think aloud through a problem so they can learn how I solve something or how to deal with confusion while still persevering in solving the problem. I want to create a learning environment where taking risks and making mistakes are okay. We will use questioning strategies to push each other’s thinking.

I will continue to reflect on my teaching practices and keep students’ goals in mind. To be successful, I will need to be very organized in keeping track of state standards, objectives, lesson planning, student assessments, gathering materials and other teaching duties so I can better serve my students. As a teacher, I would need to check on state standards before I plan my lessons. The objectives will fit the state standards. When I plan my lessons, I have to make sure each step is aligned with the state standards. Before I implement my lessons, I need to gather materials so they would be ready during the lesson time. If I scrambled for math materials during the math time, it will waste my teaching time and students’ learning time. Assessing students is important for the teacher to know how the students are progressing and attaining or not attaining the math concepts expected by the state standards.

Differentiation
No two students learn the same way or at the same pace. The teacher need to differentiate so all students can be successful learners. Through flexible grouping during the guided practice is a great way for all students to learn together. These groups should be heterogeneous so the low achieving students can learn from the higher achieving students as well as vice versa. This would be a good time to give high level tasks for all students to explore math concepts. In doing so, the high achieving students may learn something from the lower achieving students. In partner and small group work, the students with special needs or ELL will learn through peer-assistance; this is another way to support learners with challenges.

As for struggling learners, I need to explicitly teach the task and problem solving strategies at first. I will do the gradual release method where they are scaffold in problem solving on their own. For example, they will be given easier tasks at first so they could feel successful. Next, they will receive challenging tasks to push them further in problem solving until they reach the lesson’s objectives.

In our diverse communities, there are many students whose first language is not English. These ELL students need better support to help them learn in the American classrooms. Here are strategies for teaching math to them: 1) Write and state the content and language objectives; 2) Build background; 3) Encourage use of native language; 4) Use comprehensible input; 5) Explicitly teach vocabulary; and 6) Plan cooperative/interdependent groups to support language.
When the teacher share the objectives with the students, everyone would know what they are expected to learn and to do. Students are comforted that a road map is provided so they know what they are learning is meaningful in which this engage them in their learning. To build background on something the students do not have prior knowledge of, the teacher need to link students’ prior learning of previous lessons or a real-world problem. Encourage the students to use their native language when processing something new or thinking on the task so they do not get overwhelmed with trying to think in English and not be able to understand the concept being learned. The teacher need to make each lessons comprehensible through clear language, use of gestures and motions that link to the vocabulary, model the instructions, use visuals, use manipulative, real objects, demonstration and picture books.

ELL students do not acquire the math vocabulary on their own. Math teachers need to teach math vocabulary and academic language explicitly through word wall, clear explanation, concept maps, personal math dictionaries, and time to practice using math terms in meaningful ways. As I mentioned previously, ELL students can learn from their peers in small groups or in partners. This gives them a chance to speak, write, talk, and listen in nonthreatening situations. Though, it is important to not isolate ELL students of low level English by placing them with native English speakers. In small groups and in pairs, there should be at least one other ELL student similar in language level as well as speaks the same first language or a bilingual student so the ELL student do not feel frustrated and alone.

Assessment
As a teacher, I would use assessment to gather information in my students’ progress of their learning and their achievement in attaining the math concepts. Assessments should be use to encourage students’ learning and making instructional decisions. The appropriate assessment reflects on the full range of mathematics; they are concepts and procedures, mathematical processes, problem solving, reasoning, communication and productive deposition.
There are so many strategies to assess students’ learning. I will share only a few of my favorites. First, in before the lesson starts, the teacher can find out what students know through popcorn activity or Post-It responses on the KWL chart. During and after the lesson, there are anecdotal notes, observation checklists, math journal entries, ticket out (where students fill out a short questionnaire on what they learned and what they are confused about still), performance-based tasks and post unit tests. For students who struggle with writing, the teacher interviews the students so they can orally share what they learned.

Intervention
Students need intervention assistance if after assessing them, they are still way behind on knowing math or not able to learn concepts based on the grade level state standards in a regular math class. Intervention methods are different for each school. I am not sure where I would be at as an elementary school teacher. If the school I am hired at has math pull outs, I would have to follow the school’s procedures. Though, I hope to work with the math specialist closely so I know how the students are progressing. I also hope to impart with the specialist about where my class is in math so the pull out students can maybe have similar math tasks. I would want the pull outs to happen during my normal math time so it would not interfere with the other content areas that I would be teaching as well as any specials such as P.E. and music. I do not want these pull-outs to happen permanently. This type of intervention help is need-based and flexible enough when the students gain the concept knowledge, they can rejoin the math class fully. For those students who may need intervention and are not part of an intervention program, I have supplied some examples of supportive assistance in my differentiation section of this paper.

Technology
Technology is part of our world and many professions require some kind of technology. The use of technology in a math classroom is beneficial for students so they can learn concepts in a different way, connect it to the real world application, connect to symbolism and making math engaging. I will allow use of calculators. The benefit of calculator usage are used to develop concepts and enhance problem solving, used for drill, improve attitudes and motivation, and used commonly in society. I will also allow the use of the computer if it enhances students’ learning through games, graphing programs and other supplemental websites. The benefits of using technology that it requires different mental action in doing math, it provides unlimited materials with easy clean up, and it accommodates for different purposes.

Language Skills (Speaking, Reading and Writing)
The math teacher is also a language teacher. Mathematics has its own vocabulary and organization. Math students need to be literate in the math language as well as the written language to be successful in our society. Math requires reading for students to read the directions or story problem that they are trying to solve. Writing requires students to put down their thinking and learning on paper. Speaking requires students to verbally think aloud in processing their learning as well as talking about math.

First of all, I would require reading in the math classroom. As a whole group, we read each task or directions together. Next, students can work in groups or pairs for writing and speaking to learn concepts together. As the math teacher, I need to model explicitly on how to speak using math terminology with the task at hand. I would provide plenty of practice time for the students to converse using math terms in meaningful learning tasks with each other. Students would have opportunities to record their thinking, data collecting, attempts, strategies being used, and other comments before, during and after the lesson in writing and drawing. For the students who are ELL or with special needs, I would provide sentence frames or cloze sentences to help them voice their thinking. They can also draw and label as another way to share their work with me and with other students.

Student Learning
I believe all students have the ability to learn math at high levels. Teaching through problem solving is a great way to engage students and it gives them confidence in doing math. Rigor is having high standards for students’ learning and doing math. As teachers, we need to ask high level questions to engage students into thinking deeper. By doing this, they can see that math is not just about computations, but it is about relationships, patterns and number sense. Making the lessons rigorous will challenge the students and they will feel excited about learning math. For struggling students, they too can be challenged. They need to be built up for these challenges by teaching them problem solving strategies, give them plenty of time to practice these strategies and give them small challenging tasks to do at first. These students should given easier problem-based tasks so they could feel successful. However, I believe they need to be given a tough problem (still solvable to them with assistance) that they would fail at and guide them in how to deal with the failure so they persevere in continuation of solving the problem.

Drill and practice can be effective for memorization of basic math facts. I like teaching through problem solving because for the students learn connections in a way that is best for them; they seek different ways to solve problems; and they need to justify their answers and processes in solving them. I admit that I will need extensive training to teach math through problem solving. I did not grow up having teachers who truly taught through problem-based tasks.

By Stacey Moy