Technology: Boots, Warts & AllAMA 5 April 2014

GREG OATESDepartment of Mathematics,

The University of Auckland

Complex, Inter-Related Factors affecting Successful Technology Integration

“DOING Maths”VS

“LEARNING Maths”VS

“Delivery & Management”

Technology as a tool-Research Mathematicians; Commercial & workplace, e.g. Excel, Matlab, Maple (past=slide rules, log tables etc)

Teachers, educators. Pedagogical Technical Knowledge (PTK); CAS-calculators; Internet & Software options; Geogebra, Desmos, Mathematics, Autograph, Wolfram Alpha, Khan Academy, BYOD

Powerpoint, Tablet PC’s,data-projectors; Interactive Whiteboards; Learning Management systems (Onenote; Moodle; Cecil); Response systems (eg clickers)

“Doing Maths” vs “Learning Maths” vs “Delivery & Management”

Doing Maths:

Learning Maths:

Maths delivery & Management:

Learning Maths:The necessary knowledge of the principles and techniques required to teach mathematics using a given technology (Thomas & Hong, 2013).Mathematicians tend to have a “tool”=oriented view of technology, hence calculators seen as toys, limited awareness of learning opportunities, e.g. visualisation (rule of four); Exploration; skills building through repetitive exposure; (PTK), lessens arithmetic errors.

Drijvers, 2012

PTK :

Learning Maths PTK:

Thomas & Hong, 2013

Boots & All:Explosion of options/possibilities; BYOD

What’s Available? (not even touching on statistics)• Calculators: Scientific, Graphics, CAS, e.g. TI-nSpire –links

between teacher & students;• Delivery: Data Projectors, Interactive Whiteboards, overhead

data-cameras; Tablet PC’s, lecture recordings; • BYOD: Flipped Classrooms & Blended Learning: Huge range of

options Doceri, Smartphones to make recordings; Internet access via tablets, computers, smartphones: Wolfram Alpha, Khan Academy, Freeware: e.g. Desmos, Geogebra; Math Way (need to purchase for full functionality); Other Commercial , eg Autograph

• Access: now potentially less of problem? – many platforms work on Smartphones (apps); Have calculators lost their advantage of portability?

• Lectures: Desmos, Wolfram Alpha, smart-phone response app;• Assignments: Promote active use of technology –e.g. marked

correct if use technology (issues of how students show answers); ask for graphs using technology;

• Group Tutorials: Tasks designed to be technology-active; BYOD; only one out of five tutorials in computer lab (Desmos-students highly familiar even in just 4 weeks); Tutorial with Smartphone video as task; (total 10% of coursework)

• Assessment: Test (10%) & five Skills quizzes (10 questions each quiz, worth 1%) done online using MathXL; Exam (60%) still traditional except CAS calculators permitted (fewer have);

• Learning: Encouraged to use web; Learning support quizzes (with study plans) on MathXL

Boots & All: UoALUMOS Project Maths 102

Rots Brain, Destroys Skills: This view is a distraction, non-productive: Ineffective use certainly can have this effect– this is the BIG CHALLENGE:How to promote, develop effective use –Instrumental Genesis?Access: Cost of many options still high, even freeware cant be accessed without a phone or computer; Often not allowed in summative assessment (e.g. exams); Which technology to choose?Syntax & Instrumentation: Can take a while for teachers & students to learn (advantage of Desmos is that it doent take long at all)–learning technology can get in the way of the mathematics; PTK: Growing challenge for teachers, especially with BYOD, how to keep up with the affordances, instrumentation of so many different technologies?

Warts

Summer Project 2012/2013: UoA – Michael Walden & Simeon Pattenwise: Looked at wide variety of online learning & assessment platforms (not e.g. Math Way-primarily learning); Settled on MathXL (advantages described earlier);Technology–Active Assessment: They looked at a large number of questions traditionally asked in Maths 102 exams: Classified as Technology –Trivial; -Neutral, ActiveTrivial: (Does not imply the question is trivial)e.g. Determine the gradient & y-intercept of 5y + 3x - 2 =0.Even without technology, this is largely a routine procedural question. (Skemp’s instrumental vs relational understanding).How might we transform or ask such a question as technology-active?

Online Learning& Assessment

How can technology help?

Scientific calculator - limitedto arithmetic value; GC - sketch a graph, helps with visualisation; CAS - will just give answer(Wolfram Alpha, Geogebra,TI-nSpire etc); Can also Show area under curve – calculate as move across.

Example: AskingTechnology-Active Questions

7

3

331 dxxFind

0 2 4 6 8

6

4

2

Suppose you know that the definite integral for a certain function f(x) between a and b equals 15, i.e.

Example: AskingTechnology-Active Questions

15)( b

adxxf

What can you say about the integral of f(x) + 4 between the same limits, i.e.

?4)( b

adxxf

Thank You

Promos:*MEU Post-Grad Courses: b.barton@auckland.ac.nz*Maths Olympiad: p.kane@auckland.ac.nz*Teacher Study Awards (close early June): Information meeting to be held at Epsom Campus – AMA to email.