I can admit I don’t remember much about school, primary school in particular, with this in mind there is something that was life changing for me in my secondary school career. I remember in my fifth year of secondary school I was going through a very hard time with my mathematics. this is a subject that I could not comprehend in the slightest. I some how was able to successfully pass my national 5 maths with a very good result (no idea how) and then I was encouraged to continue to higher and complete this course.
I remember when my teacher spoke to me about this I was very hesitant with nerves and anticipation but I agreed that I would give this a try baring in mind my struggles with mathematics. I remember walking into the classroom after break time and could only describe it as the worst experience of my life. I remember the lights being out so it was so dark in the classroom and this just heightened my nerves completely. Anyway I began the course and I thought I was actually doing quite well until the first prelim.
After completing this prelim I was awarded a no award for my maths and that was a sign for me to quit and give up. If it hadn’t been for my twin sister I would have never realised my potential and my maths abilities. She was also working through the course but dedicated her time and effort to helping me with my maths, my own personal tutor. Every night we did at least 2 hours of maths on top of other subjects that we were revising and I don’t know how or when, but one day it clicked. I understood. I couldn’t believe it. As school does, it came rapidly quick to the date of our second prelim. I remember walking into the exam hall hands sweating. I completed the paper and shortly after I was told I was awarded a C I was so happy. So so happy. After this the exam came round, and my sister worked with me EVERY NIGHT and by results day for exams I was awarded an overall B for my final exam.
This experience is something that has taught me a lot and I will always remember it. It taught me a lot of things:
know the power of yet, you can’t do something.. YET
Never give up on something you care about
You will never be great at something straight of the bat
Always be kind to people and give help
Treat people how you would like to be treated.
But most importantly, to have confidence in your own progression and development. I now realise if I can’t do something that’s completely okay, because if you want it hard enough it will happen. I have used this courage through multiple placements particularly with behaviour management, as well as personal goals and this has all allowed me to become the person I am today and I am proud of that person. But most importantly, always appreciate help and you don’t have to suffer alone. Someone will always be there and that’s what I wish to be when I am a teacher, a friendly face to help progression and an agony aunt with problems. A problem shared is a problem halved.
Today was our last input for discovering mathematics. Throughout this module I have discovered a few things including mathematics. This journey of discovery hasn’t been easy but I can officially say I understand fully the fundamental ideas of mathematics.
Essentially, I have discovered: what the fundamental ideas of mathematics is, different aspects of mathematics within the classroom and how a teacher can accomdate this in the classroom.
At the beginning of this module I believed maths to be counting, equations, sums and dread. The idea of maths always brought fear and anexity to me, however this module has changed the way I think about maths and consequentially the way I will teach in the future.
Essentially, Liping Ma (2010) devised an idea to teach children mathematics through the idea of profound understanding of fundamentals mathematics. This is essentially through four main ideas: basic ideas and principles, interconnectedness, longitudinal coherence and multiple perspectives. To achieve success in primary and secondary mathematics these four ideas must be applied. The idea of basic ideas and principles suggests that all stages of maths should be broken down and applied in a simpler way and then built up into a more complicated way, without this children may get confused and begin to disengage resulting in poor mathematical skills. With this scaffolding children can link ideas and find easier ways to complete a question/sum. Furthermore, children should appreciate interconnectedness throughout their learning. Linking ideas together can make problems easier and can allow children to break things down. By showing children interconnectedness in their learning this will allow them to begin to appreciate the links between real life and maths, for example my previous blog on statistics. Showing children this link can help promote engagement and motivation within the classroom. The idea of longitudinal coherence refers more to the teacher to track progression throughout learning to show children improvements and things to work on, by doing so children can work on their progress points and track improvements. As well as know where they are within the class – doing well or not. Finally, children must have the ability to have multiple perspectives. This relates to the way the teacher teach the class, providing them with different ways to reach the same result, by doing so children can opt for the way they find easiest and guide their learning on their own preferences. By applying all four ideas children have the ability to progress within their learning journey and find their own personal success, however none of this will be done without the scaffolding of the classroom teacher this is something I have learnt throughout my discovery of mathematics.
Within the classroom children have all different ways to learn mathematics which the teacher must accomodate for this is to optimise the attainment within the classroom, throughout this discovery I have learnt that learning can be fun and active a few ways that I have learnt is;
art to teach thirds
outside work to optimise distance
science to incorporate maths
Without this module I would be more hesitant to deliver a maths lesson and this has made me so much more confident in my maths skills. I believe that I have fully discovered maths and I will be taking my knowledge into my future teaching, applying these fundamental mathematics and showing children an easy way to approach a difficult problem. This module has opened my eyes and enlightened me with ways to teach maths.
References:
Ma, L., (2010) Knowing and teaching elementary mathematics New York: Routledge.
Everyone knows that mathematics can help children in the classroom and academically however, how can they help in real life?
In a recent input we discussed how mathematics is involved in medicine specifically, how statistics can help. This is something that has really interested me in the sense that the NHS can be reliant in this mathematics at times.
According to NHS England (undated) ‘statistics are used to create debate, inform decision making and research both within government and by the wider community.’ This suggests that without statistics research within the medical world would not be able to take place.
This is supported by Annekld (2016) where they believe that statistics are vital to medicine and in specfic nursing and they way they interpret and understand the data they have been presented with. Medical statistics allow nurses to make quick decisions and act on outcomes they have been presented.
Essentially, statistics is an integral part of nursing and the medical profession, this is due to the direct impact it has on the wider community and society. This can effect individuals on a wider scale being without statistics people could be prescribed wrong dosage, or not be prescribed the essential medicine.
According to Caplan (2012) statistics are used in medicine for a number of reasons most importantly for blood pressure accuracy, this is devolved around statistics – what is healthy and what needs attention. This suggests that statistics are needed to test the healthiness of the patient and allow everyone to achieve the ‘norm’.
SO… what does this mean for us as teachers?
Well, this has certainly opened my eyes to the power of mathematics, without this people have the ability to deteriorate in health and in worst case scenario have a fatal outcome. This statistical values allows people to keep on top of health as well as correctly preform a medical procedure.
As teachers we should always emphasise the importance of mathematics within the real world and consequently this is a big one. This can allow children to further engage with their academic studies as well as show them there is a life of maths outside of the classroom. This links to Ma (2010, pp.22) where she states children should have interconnectedness within their learning in maths, how does this impact on them in the long run and how can they grow up to change the world from maths. This gives them a goal to achieve and a dream to set, to change the medical world through the impact of maths.
Us as teachers need to encourage these goals and plant the right seeds for children to fall in love with maths and see it as so much more than just counting and sums.
References:
NHS England (undated) Statistics[online] Available at: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/category/statistics. (Accessed on: 11 November 2018)
annekld. “What are the uses of statistics in nursing?”, 29 Jan. 2016, https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-uses-statistics-nursing-361410. (Accessed 11 Nov. 2018.)
Lorraine Caplan. “What are the uses of statistics in nursing?”, 22 Sep. 2012, https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-uses-statistics-nursing-361410. (Accessed 11 Nov. 2018.)
Ma, L., (2010) Knowing and teaching elementary mathematics New York: Routledge.
Recently, we had an input surrounding maths and art. This is something I really enjoyed, after this input I began to think about how much mathematics is actually involved in life, even art.
So, how does maths make us beautiful?
To explain, I think I should firstly show you some art I have done in a recent input. The left side of the picture is free hand drawing, of a person put up on the board. The right side of the picture is using maths, the difference that using maths made was amazing.
it is hard to believe that those two faces has been drawn from the same picture.
So how did I turn that awful drawing into that better drawing?
Step 1: Similarly draw a circle in the middle of the page. From the middle/top of that circle draw a vertical line to below the circle. From this join up the line and the circle with straight lines to make a jawline.
Step 2: Draw guidelines to the right of the circle. This is the mathematical part. Take a ruler and line it up to the right side and make a vertical line slightly longer then the entire face outline. Calculate the length of this line, e.g. 14 cm make 7 equal horizontal lines coming from the vertical one, e.g. every 2 cm make a horizontal line. Label them beginning from line 4.
Line 4 – Centre Line
Line 5 – 1
Line 6 – 2
Line 7 – 3
Line 1 – A
Line 2 – B
Line 3 – C ( As seen in the picture above)
Step 3 -Draw the eyes on the centre line, this is half way down the face. Half of the eye above the line half under giving the ideal eye shape. Centre the eyes half way between the vertical line and the edge of the circle.
Step 4 – Draw the nose. From the middle of the eyes made a vertical line down to horizontal line 3. Add nose features between lines 1 and 2.
Step 5 – Add the eyebrows on line C. Use short lines to create the hair effect.
Step 6 – Draw the mouth. Draw a triangle from line 2 – 3 just below the nose. Draw a vertical line from below the eyes to line 3 and shape the mouth between the triangle and the vertical lines.
Step 7 – Add the ear of the centre line, on the same line as the eyes. And then add other personal feature e.g. hair, freckles or glasses.
So using mathematics, I was able to present a better proportioned face and a more life like drawing. So why does this matter? Maths is involved in every aspect of daily lives. Arts use maths in most of their drawings, above is just an example of how maths can be applied and how I used it personally but artists use mathematics to create perceptions, and dimensions.
A piece of art which is centralised around mathematics which many people don’t know is the Mona Lisa.This painting is drawn according to the “golden ratio.” This is 1:0.618 and it is named this as it is satisfying to the eye. This pleasing proportion is simply a rectangle with dimensions that show the golden ratio, this painting has lots of rectangles to make the painting The Mona Lisa has many golden rectangles throughout the painting to make it look better. If the rectangle is divided on her forehead with a line drawn across her eyes, we get another golden rectangle, this shows that the proportion of her head length to her eyes is ‘golden’ .
(Natasha Glydon, undated)
Okay, so how can we apply math to modern life art? Instagram.
By using something called the rule of third you can make Instagram pictures more appealing. I tried it out. This is an original picture that I took. Its not very attractive right now:
By applying the rule of third I have made a third chairs and 2 thirds grass with the central person off centre. This can make the image much more interesting to the eye. This makes the picture a lot more creative and beautiful.
So what is the point of all of this?
Mathematics has the ability to make art beautiful, so does that mean maths is beautiful? By opening your mind to the application of mathematics it can show you much beauty and relevance it has in the real world. If you accept that maths is beauty then why not begin to see why you need it? This links back to Ma (2010, p.22) theory of profound understanding of fundamental mathematics that by applying the main principles including interconnectedness, by showing children the connections between maths and other aspects of live it has the abilty to find mathematics more relevant and applicable to their own individual lives. Some children might not believe they are good at maths but they might believe they are good at art, show them the connection.
Therefore, maths is beautiful.
References:
Ma, L., (2010) Knowing and teaching elementary mathematics New York: Routledge.
Natasha Glydon (undated) The Mathematics of Art Regina: Pacific Institute for Mathematical Sciences
Darlene Nguyen (undated) Learn to draw a face in 8 easy steps: Beginners Available at: https://rapidfireart.com/2015/12/07/how-to-draw-a-face-in-8-steps/#
Does maths stereotype and myths lead maths anxiety?
Okay so, we have all heard the common”I can’t do maths,” “maths is too hard,” or “I’m not a maths person, I’m better at language.” But are these all true? The answer is NO.
Okay, to be fair I have said these once or twice in my life but now through the development of my academic career, throughout this module and my own education I have learned it is not as scary as it seems. Honestly, my mum decided she wasn’t a maths person this is where I decided I wasn’t too. However, I have a twin sister that is wonderful at maths so she was known as the ‘one’ who was good as maths and I was known as the ‘one’ who was good at language. Thats always how it has been, but why…
So when I was thinking of this I asked my sister what she thought of maths in primary school, her reply was: “I loved it, my favourite subject.” Whereas when I thought of this question I reflected on my maths experience as painful and difficult. As my sister began to dig deeper into her maths experience she quickly realised that the only reason she received a A in Higher Mathematics was due to her love of maths.
So this made me think, maths stereotyping and myths actually can lead to maths anxiety and hatred and this is where my blog starts.
So essentially, no child can just diagnose themselves as bad at maths or not a maths person. However, their environment and role models can inform their decision making around this. This is particularly seen in older children opposed to younger children. So role models, what do I mean by that? This could be siblings, parents, grandparents, sport instructors even teachers.
“…mathematics anxious teachers may serve to foster the early development of mathematics anxiety among their students” Arem (2010, p.30)
All these people can act as role models or influencers for that child and if they begin to say ‘oh, maths isn’t my thing,’ then the child may begin to think that that is the same for them, although this is not the case.
Everyone is, whether they know it or not, capable of learning maths.
Inheriting these negative stereotypes may stop the child from opening their full potential in mathematics for the rest of their lives.
Okay so how do we get this across? Firstly, children must understand every mistake is a lesson and that if they don’t achieve the correct answer for one sum thats fine, they must just pick themselves up and start again and continue to preserve in their mathematic journey. Simple things like these have the ability to boost children mathematical confidence.
Okay so what is maths stereotypes and myths? Well to name a few…
The maths gene myths – some people inherit maths skills
You don’t need maths myths – how is this relevant to my life
The drill and repeat myth – repetition makes you good at maths
The Right way myth – there is only ever one solution
The memory and speed myth – basically just memorising and writing what you have remembered down quickly in a test/exam
(Teachers Professional Resource, undated)
Okay so can this cause maths anxiety? I believe yes.
These stereotypes and myths may induce children’s fear of mathematics and develop a strong math anxiety for the child.
I understand mathematical anxiety to be children who have a genuine fear of maths so much that they dread the time of the day where maths is about to be taught. It gives them a sense of failure and unhappiness in their abilities. Hembree (1990, pp.45) describes this further as “a general fear of contact with mathematics, including classes, homework and tests.” Okay so I was right, it is a general fear of mathematics but why? This, amongst many other reasons is due to, maths stereotyping and myths.
Skemp (1989, pp.25) again describes maths as a “conditioned anxiety stimulus.” Again another person relating maths to anxiety. Okay, so what can we tell from this? Maths anxiety does exist and it is appearing in a number of young people today.
So how can we solve maths anxiety?
Positive reinforcement – stop the myths and stereotyping!!
Extra learning/teaching on the area the child struggles at
Reframe anxiety – have children write down what they are worried about and set a challenge to overcome it
Make maths more interactive, have group activities
(Oxford Learning, Undated)
So now we have established the links, if we reduce the amount of people stereotyping and producing myths to children at a young age they may grow up to have a love for maths, just like my sister. She was positively encouraged and reassured her maths skills was excellent and she went on to great things even has choose a degree area in university surrounding this. So this helps us to understand, if we stop the negativity surrounding maths positive outcomes may blossom.
Heres an interesting video I found to help overcome maths anxiety that I would like to share with you:
Does maths stereotype and myths lead maths anxiety? I believe it strongly does, without these myths being planted into children ears of maths being difficult children would experience maths in their own way and this could turn into something beautiful. The Conservative newspaper (2013) has produced a article which explains that their is strong links between stereotyping and anxiety. It also states that a classroom without these educational barriers is a classroom without fear, essentially stop stereotyping and telling children myths. Experiences that have happened to one person may not happen to another.
References:
Hembree, R. (1990) ‘The nature, effects and relief of mathematics anxiety’, Journal for Research in Mathematics Education,21, pp.33-46.
Skemp, R. R. (1989) Mathematics in the Primary School. London:Routledge.
Arem, C. A. (2010). Conquering math anxiety: A self-help workbook. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.
Teachers Professional Resource, LLC (undated) 5 Common Maths Myths Available at: https://www.teachersprofessionalresource.com/5-common-math-myths-parent-tips/ (Accessed on 23/10/18)
Oxford Learning (undated) What is Maths Anxiety? Available at: https://www.oxfordlearning.com/what-is-math-aniexty/ (Accessed on 23/10/18)
Available at: https://youtu.be/KZNdBxdNGIE (Accessed on 23/10/18)
This is a topic which interested me so much I decided to find out for myself what does this actually do to children and their learning/development?
Obviously, we all know that maths is a complex concept which many children have difficulty understanding within the classroom as it is without the pressure of being in the highest attainment group. This is something I saw often in my own placement. Are we right to arrange children in ‘ability’ groups? Does this change children’s perception of mathematics? Does this encourage children to give up? I believe that arranging children in different ability groups has the ability to boost confidence but also to drop confidence.
Okay so what are ability groups?
My understanding of this is being arranged in groups according to academic strategies, which is not always your academic preference. Take me for example, in school I was in the bottom group for language and the top for maths, but I too HATED maths, but I now ask myself was that because I was in the bottom group? Was I not getting pushed enough?
However, Hallinan et al. (2003, pp. 95) suggests that the theory of mathematic ability groups is to ideally get full potential out of all student learning and development but realistically does this happen? I would agree with Hallinan et al no.
In reality this is not the case. It can also be shown that Hallinan et al believe that assigning children in different ability groups highly restrict learning opportunities for children. So how are children supposed to find mathematics easy when their learning in the classroom is significantly narrowed due to the group they have been assigned?
I believe that giving children different attainment groups will begin to make the children may begin to feel discouraged in their mathematic abilities and begin to give up therefore reduce their confidence and growth mindset in maths. This can encourage children to have a certain feel about mathematics that they can’t do it or it’s too hard. This is commonly seen in lower ability groups in maths.
The BBC News tried to unpick the issue of maths ability groups. The article entitled “Should young children be grouped by ability?” (2017) Something that really touched my heart in this where a child quoted ‘I really hoped to be a doctor like my mum but that changed when I have moved down a group” Should children really have to change their dreams due to their math’s ability group?
From my personal experience of maths grouping I would agree with this statement, as bad as it sounds I once changed a dream due to my academic success in maths. When I was little I wanted to be a lawyer, just like members of my family and that dream ended in secondary school where I was put again in the lowest maths class, is that right?
So what does this do to children? Do they begin to feel like a failure? Or that they aren’t getting pushed enough? Personally… I believe yes. Why?
Well, due to the fact that some groups are being taught differently and more important different stuff. From my experience of primary school, children are given different work for their individual topics depending on what group they are in. By the end of the topic children in the lower groups hadn’t covered nearly the same stuff as children in the top groups, personally I believe this is profoundly unfair. But why do they do that?
This is supported by Pritchard (2012) as they believe that maths ability groups does not allow children to achieve the full benefit for the curriculum due to the groups varying the different aspects of maths. Not all children achieve the same education as others.
Right okay, so maths ability groups are sounding bad at the moment.
However, it’s not all doom and gloom…
I came across a very interesting document produced by the Dr Marks, NCETM (2012) that shows the pros of having maths ability groups. The thing I found most interesting about this document is that it give children a sense of identity and a feeling of being apart of something with in the class. I found this really quite touching, this gives children the chance to make friends and relationships within their class and even grow confidence in their learning.
Furthermore, maths ability groups allow children to have a group discussion and allow help from other members of their groups which are working at the same level/work as them. This may in fact boost confidence for maths knowing they are not going through it alone and can seek help from peers as well as the teacher.
Okay so, after this research I have came to the conclusion that I believe that maths ability groupings has pro’s and cons. It is something which I have speculated upon a lot and have decided that I agree with maths ability groupings to aid all children in work through discussions etc however, I believe all children should be initially taught the same material where they then choose how far they wish to progress with it, this is something I will choose to do in my future teaching.
References:
Hallinan, M.T et al. (2003) ‘Ability Grouping and Student Learning’ Education Policy (6) pp. 95
‘Should you children be grouped by ability?’ (2017) Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-42154013 (accessed on 23/10/17)
Pritchard, R. (2012) The Influence of Ability Grouping on Math Achievement in a Rural Middle School New Jersey, USA: Seton Hall University
Marks, R (2012) Well-meant intentions: ability-grouping in primary mathematics King’s College, London: NCETM
I have been thinking a great deal about this question…
Does maths have to be boring? Does the stereotypes have to continue? How can I improve maths attainment in my teaching? Well, I have researched thoroughly and have put my thoughts and research down and now I am sharing it here.
Okay so what is creative maths?
Before we begin to explore this we should ask ourselves, what is creative mathematics? Creative Mathematics, according to Wall (2012), “is not a compendium of mathematical facts and inventions to be read over as a connoisseur of art looks over paintings.” This in fact suggests that creative mathematics allows children to delve into their imagination and explore the wonders of numbers, numeracy, shape and measure etc.
Why would we use creative mathematics? How does this impact?
Creativity in maths allows growth of the mind of individuals. However, this is an area of mathematics which is neglected in primary schools. According to Sriraman (2004) believes that without creativity within mathematics children can’t achieve their full potential within their mathematical journey. This suggests that using the mind in a more creative way whilst learning mathematic skills will help children grasp the basics and adapt their minds more fully to different concepts and their overall understanding of maths. This therefore would suggest that exploring different concepts in mathematics has a greater impact for understanding maths. This statement really made me think, if children cannot explore mathematics how do we improve problem solving skills? How do we raise attainment if we cannot engage their minds fully in the lesson? Children could just be sitting bored and not listening, how do we solve this?
MAKE IT CREATIVE AND FUN!
I found that Tucker (2014) also would agree with this. It can be seen through Tuckers extensive research that creative mathematics connects the psychological and the physical mathematical learning development within children. Essentially, this means that learning mathematics through creative methods in a primary school can promote educational development but also provide links with other areas of development for example, core motor skills. So in the early years this should be something we should all consider, right? I want you to reflect upon this, if maths wasn’t made creative or interactive would you like to learn it? What is timetables was just copying out continuously the tables on a white board with no fun activity to try and help remember. So really, in order for children to feel confident in their mathematic development they must be able to make choices and explore their finding of mathematics AND HAVE FUN! Also, this, from an early stage, can help children decide what is the best learning style for them but also encourage excitement and enthusiasm towards the subject within school and out with school.
So, a win win right?
Something that is clear educational development theories of making maths creative has not changed over the years. In fact, I would go as far to say that creative learning supplies learners with the basic knowledge to explore the different experiences on a more personal level and make maths more relevant to them. However, creativity in the maths classroom is not just about what pupils do what also what we do as teachers. Boaler (2015) supports this as she believes that we need to think about creatively about the mathematical experiences we offer our pupils, by doing so we can open up opportunities for them to be creative.
Olkin and Schoenfeld (1994) states that:
“The joy of confronting a novel situation and trying to make sense of it – the joy of banging your head off a mathematical wall, and then discovering that there may be ways of either going around or over that wall”
This suggests that children are aware of their boundaries, and by given clear indication about what knowledge to apply to the specific problem, can explore and be creative about mathematical problems which can leave so much room for children to interpret and value their individual ideas and thoughts. This therefore suggests that mathematical creativity has a greater impact in the classroom than that of traditional mathematics.
So can we make creative maths through play?
Is it possible to say that mathematics and play could intertwine in the classroom and at home? Could a child possibly improve their maths skills and knowledge by playing with toys and their friends?
According to Curricular Guidance for Preschool Education (2018)
“play is an effective vehicle for fostering Mathematical concepts and developing positive attitudes to mathematics.”
Creative mathematics is essential to developing children’s growth mindset and outlook on life. This is such an important thing to focus on in the early years mathematics classroom, bringing fun into mathematics has the ability to change perspectives of mathematics from a fairly young age. I cannot stress this enough after my research findings, we must include this in the early years.
From another lecture, we was discussing and learning about learning and development for children, this is something I found really interesting. So I have decided to to speak about this. Something to realise is, maths is all around us, even if we least expect it. Lev Vvgotsky began a theory that children’s learning and development improve during the ‘zone of proximal development.’ The zone of proximal development is the difference between what a learner can do without help, and what a learner can do with the help of a more able other, for an example a teacher or teaching assistant.
Surely, the teaching of maths can be influenced by relating the subject to the child’s own knowledge and experience. So really, I think this helps us to understand why is creativity such an important aspect of learning maths, as it allows the child to personalise it and be able to relate it back to themselves in a more real life experience.
I found this really interesting, Saracho (1986, cited in Saracho and Spodek, 2003, p.77) suggests that when children play, they are able to involve themselves in social situations, and help them achieve skills such as sharing, helping and empathy. Therefore, play is extremely important to children’s learning, for the following reasons:
allows children to experiment
provides meaningful contexts
promotes social learning
encourages perservance
(Early Years Matter, undated)
Through playing, children can move in and out of reality, and express their feelings. they can choose any setting or time and create a different life and in that use different types of creative mathematics to make their dreams come to life, for example counting how much unicorns or how much time there is until the next dual, even using maths to create a fort in their living rooms simple problem solving in a creative way can improve children’s mathematical skills and abilities. As a child this is something I clung to, who knew maths was involved in this?
Nutbrown (1994) said ‘mathematics is never far away from explaining a child’s actions,’ this again tells us all the different ideas or exploration children display from their minds always links back to mathematics in some way or another. Children using creativity in their everyday school life will help their fundamental understanding of the mathematics they are learning and why they are learning it, and vice versa they might use their skills they acquire in school to make their play more meaningful and give it more an educational purpose.
So how does play help? Is there evidence? Yes there is… According Dr Karyn Purvis (2016) “scientists have recently determined that it takes approximately 400 repetitions to create a new synapse in the brain of children – unless it is done through play, in which case, it takes between 10 and 20 repetitions.” More on this can be seen through the following video:
The quality of children’s play is greatly influenced by the opportunities around them. As teachers we can provide materials and encouragement and open the door to new activities and learning.
Right so I’ve rambled on about why we should use creative maths, but does creative mathematics have a better impact to children?
So, does creative mathematics have a better impact for teaching and learning mathematics? I would say yes. Why?
Children retain more information the more it is related to real life situations and experiences. When maths is more creative children will make connections to situations in life where they have experienced this, for example, when learning money and change, the problem may be “Ben was at the shop and spent £1 on chocolate and £1.50 on crisps how much did he spend in total?” this allows children to build a relationship within the mathematics classroom. So yes I believe making maths more creative whether through play, problem solving or other cross curricular subjects will make children more engaged and happy with their learning.
References:
Wall, H. (2012) Creative Mathematics Washington D.C.: Mathematical Association of America
Sriraman, B. (2004) ‘The Characteristics of Mathematical Creativity’ The Mathematics Educator 14(1) pp. 19-34
Tucker, K. (2014)Mathematics through play in the early years Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications
Olkin, I. and A. Schoenfeld, H. (1994) A discussion of Bruce Reznick’s Chapter (Some thoughts on writing for the Putnam) Mathematical thinking and problem solving. Schoenfeld, A.H. Hillside NJ, Lawerence Erlbraum: 39-51
Boaler, J. (2015) Mathematical Mindsets: Unleashing Students’ Potential Through Creative Math, Inspiring Messages and Innovative TeachingNew Jersey, USA: John Wiley & Sons
Karyn Purvis Institute of child development. Children from hard places and the brain: chapter 1. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ak6z3pqNqFU (Accessed on: 5 October 2018)
Department of Education (2018) Curricular Guidance for Preschool Education London: Education Scotland
Department of Education (2013) Creativity across learning 3-18 London: Education Scotland
Department of Education (2018) Maths through play London: Education Scotland
Saracho, O. and Spodek, B. (2003) Contemporary Perspectives on Play in Early Childhood EducationCharlotte, U.S: Information Age Publishing
Nutbrown, C. (1994) Threads of Thinking: Young Children Learning and the Role of Early Education London: Paul Chapman Publishing
Early Years Matters (Undated) Play and Learning Available at: http://www.earlyyearsmatters.co.uk/eyfs/a-unique-child/play-learning/ (Accessed on 23/10/18)
What is the odds that you’ll win a toy playing the ‘claw’ arcade game?
First of all we should probably consider what is probability and chance. So what is Probability?
Basically probability is how likely something is to going to happen. Lots of different things can be said to be probable to happen for example, the common phrase ‘it’s probably going to rain today.’ This is the common phrase of deciding if something is going to happen. I can better explain this through the common tossing of a simple coin. As you toss a coin there can only ever be two results, either heads or tails. The probability of getting a head is ½ and likewise with tails. This is just a simple way of explaining what probability is.
Okay so now we understand probability. What is chance? Well, chance is similar to probability in the sense that chance is the likelihood that a particular outcome will occur.
So now we understand these definitions… let’s get into some real life situations of chance and probability. When I was sitting during this lecture, I began to think deeply about chance and probability and I began to think of the important question I ask myself every time I lose at the arcade. What is the chance and probability of winning the claw toy arcade game?
This here is an example of the machine I am referring to. And now everyone is asking their selves the same question. HOW DO WE WIN THIS?
Well I’m glad you have asked because I have done some research for this and have calculated the chance and probability of winning.
These claw games are designed so the claw sporadically gets strong enabling the player to win the prize. In my research I have found that some even weaken the strength after a short time so individuals get a sense of victory before it is taken from their reach. This game actually is programmed to ensure players cannot win this game. Unfair, right? So what is in the programme? Well, it is set to only go strong after 21 games. So you have to play 20 games before you can win the prize. Well, that’s not the only disturbing part, it can even be programmed to go make the claw weak after 10-25 seconds.
So what is the chance and probability of winning?
As I have mentioned previously, in order to be lucky in winning this game you have to play 20 games before you will hit a lucky strike and win a prize. Due to such high odds the chance that people are likely to win is slim. Some people might hit it lucky and begin the game on the 21st cycle however, other people may take at least 21 tries before becoming successful. This is a very frustrating but addictive game that everyone will have at least tried once. So why do they do this?
Phil Edwards (Daily Mail, 2015) discovered many of them are rigged for profit. With the settings being changed continuously from weak to strong, this suggests that the game down to hugely luck rather than skill. Edwards comprised a video (situated below) that explains the operator of the machines can set how often they pay out, and the strength of the claw will be dictated by how much money has been put in.
How are they rigged? Well… say a prize costs £5, and it is 20p or 30p to play each time and the operator wants a profit of 50 percent, the claw will only allow the player to win one out of every 21 games. Edwards has proven this through his careful studying of the machines.
It is important to remember: this is randomised, though, so the winning game cannot be counted or worked out.
The chance of winning is 1 in 15 people would receive a prize from the claw machine, this is a huge profit to all arcade companies.So basically, the game is receiving 2 to 5 more money and profit because of this impossible game.
Can you increase your chances of winning?
To increase your chances of winning you should look do some research into machines with a fixed strength. Right okay, so what does this mean? Basically, the claw that grabs applies the same grip each time and then does not weaken after the prize is claimed. You can also increase your chances by going for stuff close to the drop zone and stuff that is on top and not blocked by lots of other and heavier prizes.
So overall from my research, I have discovered that the chance and probability of this claw machine cannot in fact be measured or calculated to ensure a concrete win. However, if you play the game approximately 21 times you will have a higher probability of winning this game.
References:
Available at: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3112056/It-s-official-claw-machines-rigged-Video-reveals-grabbing-strength-tweaked-depending-money-paid-in.html (accessed on 17/10/18)
Recently, through an input on math anxiety, I discovered the saying, “the power of yet.” Since this input this saying has really stuck with me.
During my first year placement whilst teaching mathematics, specially time, one boy – who was more intelligent than he let on – decided through frustration and panic gave up on the math problem and said quite publicly ‘I can not do this.’ To be honest, when he said this I became quite puzzled and unsure what the problem was, the boy hadn’t even tried the question yet he decided that he couldn’t go any further. I encouraged him to begin to try and solve the question but he was determined he couldn’t do it and kept repeating “I can’t do it.” This set the boy into insistent panic and he began to become less engaged in the lesson and sat at his table with his pencil in his hand and not a care in his eyes.
The reason I shared this story is that, after this input I realised I should have explained to the boy you can’t do this YET. If I had just made this evident to the child I could have changed his mathematical mindset in a range of different ways.
Scotland has a math problem. Too many of us are happy to label ourselves as “no good with numbers.” This attitude is deep-rooted and is holding our country back educationally and economically. This is transforming public attitudes to math, introducing the ‘I can’t do it’s,’ or the ‘I’m rubbish at this I can’t do math.’ Improving confidence and fluency in math for children, young people, parents and all those who deliver math education to raise attainment and achievement across learning. Simply using the phrase ‘you can’t do it YET,’ has the ability to change the growth mindset of children across Scotland, making children believe in their own personal skills and abilities an improve the math problem within Scotland. With ONE SIMPLE phrase.
Encouraging children to change their words as they speak about math has the ability to change their growth mindset and determination, as well as their happiness within math. For example:
Child: Everyone is so much better at me than math. I give up.
Changed to…
Child: Maybe someone from the class can help me with this problem. I don’t get it yet but I will.
Simply changing the negative to a positive with the power of yet instantly changes the child’s view on the math problem.
Using famous people in this class to show the children that achieving competency in something takes time would also boost their confidence and show children, that they may not be capable of the math problem right now but they will be with the power of yet. For example: “It took me 17 years and 114 days to become an overnight success” -Lionel Messi. What does this show? It DOESN’T happen straight away. “People tell me that I’m born with natural talent I’m like . . . uh no! . . . I just practice.” – Ed Sheeran. Again, what takes practice? MATH. How to we gain practice? With the power of yet.
So imagine what each of us, as teachers, could do as individuals, for the children in our classroom, the wider community, and the world we live in if we give our very best, to replace “can’t” with a deafening “yet”! This has the ability to change mathematical mindsets within children for a very early age.
One of the most important moments that I reflect on from semester 1 was from my elective module. The base moment from this was the moment I received notification that I had failed my first Politics essay. This essay was micro essay made up of 750 to test our knowledge and effort towards this course. This devastated me as I have always been an achiever throughout school and worked my hardest to acquire the best scores on tests/exams. Unfortunately, I received a M1, this is a marginal fail by 1 mark. My feedback pinpointed my referencing and key points was a bit all over the place – baring in mind this was my first ever university essay – and therefore received a fail. From this, I picked myself up and tried to remain positive about this although challenging at times. Coming up to the next essay to submit I still tried to remain this front of positive attitude, although about a week before the deadline I had a meltdown which resulted in me wanting to remove myself from the elective and join another one. With this goal in my head I set up a meeting with my advisor of studies where I told her I was determined to change because I just can’t do it. She advised me to stick with it and things will get better and aided me with my skills for the next essay. From this I decided to consult my mum on my options, she told me to continue to write the next essay and see what would come from this. With doubt in my mind I began to write this next essay, crying through almost it all. I persevered and finished the essay, taking particular care with the essay structure and points and my referencing’s and in fact finished the essay that day. After submitting the essay early I felt no confidence in my work at all, and feared the day of results. That day came when the notification came through and I had achieved a C2. This was just brilliant for my self-esteem and I celebrated fully. After this I began to feel more confident and instantly began to write my third and final essay, completing this 3 weeks early. I felt confident with this essay and submitted it early again. I received a B3. I was absolutely delighted gaining an overall C2 for the module. Which I believed was excellent coming from a fail to a B. This has taught me to have confidence and persevere and also to just believe in myself and my abilities. This I will carry all the way through professional practice, to show children that things will pick themselves up and the storm will always pass.
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