Dan Meyer speaks on math textbooks and how they do not provide students with the opportunity to really solve problems. The textbooks provide students with all the data and graphics needed to just plug in information and solve. Let's learn how to allow the students to have 'conversations' about the problem-- let them ask the questions and put the data together ---- after all when in the real world the problem is not set up for us with all the necessary data, formulas, and 'how to's".--- we have to figure that out. "Math serves the conversation, the conversation does not serve the math!" Watch the video -- makes a world of sense! Thank Dan. (Meyer, D.) Our school district will be adopting new textbooks this year -- it has been 8 years since we have even looked at new textbooks (math). I am looking forward to see if the books are meeting the needs of metacognition in the 21st century classroom--????
Video: Dan Meyer: Math class need a make over
Retrieved September 23, 2011 from TED ideas worth spreading
I think the ideas can be applied to other fields. I teach economics at the college level and we often get caught up on formulas and do not connect with students so they actually learn.
ReplyDeleteThe principles can be applied to many disciplines and at many educational levels. The best learning situations are ones in which there is active learning that engages students.
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