Introduction
The Use Math!
initiative was designed to help upper elementary and middle school students make rich
connections between classroom mathematics and the real world while exposing students to a variety of potential careers.
Student
participants were encouraged to post ways in which they use math
outside
of the math classroom, as well as ask questions to professionals
regarding how they use math on-the-job and in daily life. The
professional panel was asked to post professional and personal uses of
math, as well as answer questions posed by our students. Ideally,
there would be student-to-student and professional-to-student
interactions.
Format
The project employed a
website and a
blog site, with the website
serving as the program's home and the blog being the place to post
questions and comments. The website contains four pages: project
information, math uses, and questions and answers, and careers. The blog contains
two sections, one for posting math uses and another for questions and
answers. Information from the blog was transferred to the home website.
Participation
I ended up with seven project participants excluding myself. The project information was posted on
Google for Educators,
Tapped In,
Global School Net,
Pro Teacher,
and three Yahoo! user groups. The Google, Global
School Net, and Tapped In sites were chosen to attract teachers and
their students, while the Yahoo! sites were intended to attract
professional participants. One participant was secured from Google for
Educators, an actuary who just completed coursework for his teacher
certification. This person posted a very nice and age appropriate
summary of actuarial work, along with a URL for a site to learn more.
Another participant was attracted through the Yahoo! military veterans
user group. This person sent an e-mail about his eagerness to
participate, but then didn't post any information. A teacher from Pro
Teacher stated that she would be interested in having her class
participate this fall.
With only one participant, I had to take action, soliciting posts form
friends, family, and former students. I knew I could count on my honors
students to post ways in which they use math. The questions posted, however, were not specific to ways math
is used in the real world, but were more historical in nature requiring
research. Had this been during the school year with current students,
these questions would have been answered by the professional panel, student participants under
the guidance of their teachers, or I would have assigned the research
for extra credit. I would have also reminded students to gear their
questions towards math uses, though the questions posted did open a
dialogue about math. For the purposes of this project, I researched and
answered the questions.
Evaluation
I'm a bit disappointed with this first foray into learning networks. I wanted more interaction, though I
really got a feel for what it takes to solicit participants in terms of
time and how to post recruitment information. Even though this project was on a
short time line, I would have enjoyed
greater participation from both the students and professionals. This
would have lead to a more meaningful experience. The little bit of
interaction I had during the project, however, was enough to show me
the potential power of connecting my classroom with the world.
Lessons Learned
One thing that really stood out to me was the effort that goes into
recruiting participants. If I had this to do over, I would have started
sooner and posted the project in far more places. Instead of three
Yahoo! user groups, I would have posted to perhaps 20 or more to garner
increased professional participation.
Another consideration is precise wording. While I was seeking questions
about how math is used in life, the blog section for this simply asked
for questions about math. I thought that project overview sufficiently
stated what I wanted, but I was wrong. (I should have know this being a
teacher!) I went back and reworded the request for clarification.
Regarding the blog, I didn't realize that participants needed to be
registered users to start a thread. After an e-mail from a friend
saying he was
having difficulty posting, I entered the topics to which participants
could add comments. I should have also added a "How I use math at work"
thread. I had also started the blog with security so I could control
who could post. I quickly realized that I wanted all the posts I could
get, and entering each person would be cumbersome. Therefore, I removed
the security restriction to allow all to post entries.
I learned that the connections and technology that learning
networks rely upon spur enthusiasm for learning. Enthusiastic students
learn and retain more information, and are likely better able to
transfer the information to alternate situations. I look forward to
using networked learning in my classroom. I may continue the Use Math!
project, but also will look for other projects in which to participate
so that I can continue learning.