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  • 1.  IMPACTful Discussions (Teacher Prep): How do you facilitate sharing for reluctant students?

    Posted 07-01-2024 19:55:00
    Edited by Xianwei Van Harpen 07-03-2024 10:51:02

    Everyone has reluctant students in the classroom. How do you (as the teacher) facilitate sharing for those students who may not want to share their thinking? 

    Someday you will have your own classroom. What conversations could we have now (in Math for Teachers courses) about increasing engagement and sharing in mathematics classrooms?



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    Keith Nabb, Xianwei Van Harpen
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  • 2.  RE: IMPACTful Discussions (Teacher Prep): How do you facilitate sharing for reluctant students?

    Posted 07-17-2024 21:32:00

    Just to get you rolling here....At the start of a new semester, I always have a few reluctant students. The way I get them to successfully engage is by offering options. Option 1: I send students to the board frequently. (most, if not all, happily go). If Option 1 doesn't work, I hand them a mini whiteboard and ask them to work on that instead (it can be displayed on a doc cam later). If neither of these options is successful, I ask them to join a group that is already at a board and to observe what they are doing. I've never had a student not be okay with this. It is as if I am freeing them from having to think. However, before you know it, this results in them borrowing the group's marker and helping them out + joining the conversation. Main point: sometimes, students are slow to participate so you have to provide options. For the next class, this student almost always self-starts. What do you do?



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    Keith Nabb
    Professor
    Piedmont Virginia CC
    Charlottesville VA
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  • 3.  RE: IMPACTful Discussions (Teacher Prep): How do you facilitate sharing for reluctant students?

    Posted 07-18-2024 07:21:00

    Keith, thanks for sharing your ideas. In my experience, I also use vertical boards frequently and my students love them! Since I started using vertical boards a few years ago, in my mid-term feedback surveys and end-of-semester teaching evaluations, a large number of students would specifically comment on how much they enjoyed the small group work on the board and that they found it to be very effective compared to listen to the professor demonstrate how to solve problems. Students also told me that seeing other students' solutions, both correct and incorrect ones, really help them learn math and decrease anxiety knowing that everyone makes mistakes and that is okay (and important)!



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    Xianwei Van Harpen
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  • 4.  RE: IMPACTful Discussions (Teacher Prep): How do you facilitate sharing for reluctant students?

    Posted 07-18-2024 07:36:00

    When teaching online classes, I have students attempt problems and submit solutions a few hours before class for me to select certain work to use in class discussion. Over a few semesters, I got very positive feedback from students. They loved seeing other students' work. I usually don't put students' names on the slides so nobody knows whose work it is. Since all students have thought about the problems ahead, they all have things to say about the solutions. (If a student did not do the work before class, they will not have as a great experience as others. They quickly learn that they need to stay on top of this work. I don't assign many problems before class. I grade them for completion.) The discussion is usually very respectful and encouraging even when there are disagreements and mistakes. I generally don't just pick the correct solutions unless I try to show case certain work. The approach helps students see the value of mistakes in learning and help them develop growth mindset in learning math.



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    Xianwei Van Harpen
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