Hi everyone! Welcome back to my math blog and my second ever
blog post! This post (and each of the ones that follow it!) will contain some
of my reflections, thoughts, and reactions to course content be it lectures,
readings, videos we’ve watched, and more! I will use this space to really
express what I’ve learned so far and how I feel about it! With that being said,
let’s get started!!
One of the most important and impactful things we discussed
in class this week is that there is no such thing as a “math brain” or “not
having a math brain”. This is a discourse that is unfortunately so prevalent in
our society and in our schools. I can recall so many of my classmates who
refused to put in their full effort in math because “they just weren’t made for
it” and worse yet teachers who wouldn’t believe in students or push them to
succeed once again because they felt that math just wasn’t their strong suit.
The discourse goes the other way too and being a student who succeeded at math,
I remember peers discrediting the effort I would put in because they felt I was
“just made to do math”. As our conversations in class concluded, these
discourses are harmful to students because they truly limit their chances of
success and reduces the outcome of possibilities they have in life. Instead of
believing in this “math brain” illusion, we as future educators need to
approach math with a growth mindset and do our best to instil it in all our
students. That is, we need to encourage our students that they CAN do
math, they CAN problem solve, and they CAN overcome challenges if
they are prepared to embrace them and view them as an opportunity for growth
and improvement.
Here’s a short video that explains growth mindset by contrasting
it with fixed mindset which is where thoughts like “not having a math brain”
originate.
Another valuable discussion that we had in class this week
was around the idea that we shouldn’t be afraid to make mistakes in front of our
students, to admit to them that we don’t always have the answer right away, or
to let them know that we are learning alongside them. I think this can go a long
way in helping to establish positive relationships with students. Being open
and honest with them allows them to see you as human and more likely to trust
you, in my opinion. I know personally, I always connected and learned best
under teachers who were transparent with me. The other key takeaway for me was
that when you make mistakes in front of your students and are honest about it,
it models for them that making mistakes is okay and that they are opportunities
for growth. By seeing teachers make mistakes and approach them with a growth
mindset I think it is more likely that students will experience less anxiety
when they make mistakes of their own and even begin to adopt a growth mindset
of their own!
I am excited to keep learning in this course and I am confident
that my development as a future math educator will continue. Thanks for
reading!
