This blog post focuses on a free online course that focuses on how to learn mathematics. I am Jane Faith Schauermann, Senior Training Consultant for NMDLET. I registered for this course for a few reasons:
- As a mathematics educator, I respect the work of Joe Boaler and her work with youcubed.
- I have noticed over the years that students "math attitude" greatly influences their level of success in maths.
- I wanted to experience the course myself and determine if this was a resource I could use in my own Higher Education Developmental and Adult Education mathematics courses.
Quick Start: If you are interested in exploring this course for yourself and/or your students already, go to this link to sign up: https://www.youcubed.org/online-student-course/. Registration was simple and the course is offered in both English and Spanish.
If you would like to learn more of my experience to decide if this course if right for your students, please continue reading.
Course Overview: This course is organized into six lessons.
The lessons are:
Lesson 1: Knocking Down the Myths About Math
Lesson 2: Math and Mindset
Lesson 3: Mistakes and Speed
Lesson 4: Number Flexibility, Mathematical Reasoning, and Connections
Lesson 5: Number Patterns and Representations
Lesson 6: Math in Life, Nature and Work
Watching this as an instructor, it was clear that the lessons and messages about myths in math, and having a growth mindset, were invaluable, the idea that our brains grow when we make mistakes, that speed of computations is nothing compared to depth of understanding, and that math is about connections and sense making, are essential for our students.
The key ideas that Jo Boaler highlights at the end of the course are:
- Anyone can achieve at high levels in math
- The brain grows from experience
- Stereotypes are damaging for math
- A Growth mindset is really important for math success
- Mistakes in math grow your brain
- Being good at math does not mean being fast. Depth is more important than speed
- Number flexibility is important and valuable.
- All of math should make sense to you
- Talking about math is helpful and important
- Math is a connected subject and it is important to see and make mathematical connections
- Intuition is important in math
- It is helpful to represent math visually as well as with physical objects
- It is important to focus on the big idea in math
- Math is about pattern finding
- Math is everywhere in nature
- Math is everywhere in sports
- Math in the real world is about connections, drawing, reasoning and applying ideas, not formulas
- Good apps and games teach math conceptually and visually
The course itself states that the first three lessons are about 10 minutes each and the last three are 20 minutes each, which totals to an hour and a half. There are assignments and reflection questions after each video which add to the completion time. The course took me a total of about 3 hours. Now I admit to multitasking and stepping away from the course for a week and then returning, so my estimation is high, yet I feel safe in stating that students could complete the course in a range between 1.5-2.5 hours.
In our field of Adult Education, I can see this being a requirement of Onboarding and Orientation that will prime students for a powerful mathematical experience. I highly recommend that for administrators to compensate their teachers for completing the course so that they too gain insight into how to present certain ideas and even mathematical concepts. There is a teacher course for a cost being offered this summer, yet even just taking this course as a student was extremely useful. Our students could benefit greatly from this content as will educators.
I will be requesting that my students enroll in this course and can see that the subsequent completion certificate be required prior to the end of the first week of classes. For my students in post-secodary classes, this can be used as a homework assignment and/or extra credit. I do not offer extra credit lightly, yet the quality and value in this course is evident. For administrators, the course completion certificate will also be evidence of professional development that will not only improve the quality of teaching in the classroom, but will also have the potential to increase measurable skill gains and learning outcomes for our learners.
If you decide to enroll in this yourself, as an educator or a student, please share your experience and insights with me. I would love to hear of any value or critique you found in its content!
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