Friday, January 10, 2014

Math Ed Mania at the JMM

by Dana Ernst and Angie Hodge

2013 JMM Exhibit Hall OpeningIn our previous post, we highlighted numerous talks and events with an inquiry-based learning theme that will be taking place at the upcoming Joint Mathematics Meetings in Baltimore.

However, there are lots of mathematics education-focused sessions that we didn’t mention. Of course, you can browse the JMM Program, but this can be overwhelming since there are so many awesome things going on. In this short post, we thought we would share a few items from the program that caught our eye.

Nearly all of the MAA Contributed Paper Sessions are math education flavored and it seems like there are going to be some fantastic sessions. The one we are the most excited about is “Flipping the Classroom,” which has a whopping four parts.

Flipping the Classroom
  • Part I: Friday January 17, 2014, 8:00 a.m.-10:55 a.m.
  • Part II: Friday January 17, 2014, 1:00 p.m.-5:55 p.m.
  • Part III: Saturday January 18, 2014, 8:00 a.m.-10:55 a.m.
  • Part IV: Saturday January 18, 2014, 1:00 p.m.-2:35 p.m.

Inverted pedagogy (i.e., flipping) has been a hot topic the past few years and we are interested in learning more about its benefits and pitfalls. It’s also a topic we hope to discuss in future Math Ed Matters posts. Robert Talbert has been an evangelist for both inverted pedagogy and peer instruction and has agreed to give four talks at the JMM! Robert is a great speaker and we encourage you to check out at least one of his talks.

No matter what approach one may take to teaching, assessment is something that all teachers are concerned—and likely struggle—with. Thankfully, there are two sessions devoted entirely to this topic.

Assessing Student Learning: Alternative Approaches
  • Part I: Wednesday January 15, 2014, 8:00 a.m.-10:55 a.m.
  • Part II: Wednesday January 15, 2014, 2:15 p.m.-5:50 p.m.
  • Part III: Thursday January 16, 2014, 8:00 a.m.-11:55 a.m.

Assessment of Proof Writing Throughout the Mathematics Major
  • One Session: Thursday January 16, 2014, 8:00 a.m.-9:15 a.m.

Two courses that are “hot topics” in their design and pedagogy at the moment are “Introduction to Proofs” and “Linear Algebra.” If you are teaching one of these courses in the near future, you will want to check out one of these sessions.

Bridging the Gap: Designing an Introduction to Proofs Course
  • One Session: Thursday January 16, 2014, 7:40 a.m.-11:55 a.m.

Innovative and Effective Ways to Teach Linear Algebra
  • Part I: Friday January 17, 2014, 8:00 a.m.-10:55 a.m.
  • Part II: Friday January 17, 2014, 1:00 p.m.-2:55 p.m.

The AMS also has three sessions on mathematics education that grabbed our attention.  Learn about general math education, the Common Core, and even math outreach. With many departments wanting to help the community, the two-part session on outreach sounds very timely!

AMS Session on Mathematics Education
  • One Session: Thursday January 16, 2014, 1:00 p.m.-3:55 p.m.

AMS Special Session on The Changing Education of Preservice Teachers in Light of the Common Core
  • Part I: Wednesday January 15, 2014, 8:00 a.m.-10:50 a.m.
  • Part II: Wednesday January 15, 2014, 2:15 p.m.-6:05 p.m.
  • Part III: Thursday January 16, 2014, 8:00 a.m.-11:50 a.m

AMS Special Session on Outreach for Mathematically Talented Youth
  • Part I: Friday January 17, 2014, 1:00 p.m.-5:50 p.m.
  • Part II: Saturday January 18, 2014, 8:00 a.m.-10:50 a.m.

We hope to see y’all at the JMM!!! If you see us, please stop and chat.

What sessions are you looking forward to attending?

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Here's another event to add to the list. The great folks from "Discovering the Art of Mathematics: Mathematical Inquiry in the Liberal Arts" will be hosting a booth in the exhibit hall at the JMM. Check it out! You can get more info here.