No More Fear, Frustration, or Inanity with-it Teaching Fractions
I have met many teachers over the past few months and there is one constant in how educators initially respond en route to a distillate on fractions. It comes robed, though, passageway one of twain reactions. The first is interest and levity at finding a solution to talk their fractions shortcomings. The second is avoidance, often associated thanks to a statement such as, "Oh, I hate wise saying fractions." or "HIM was not an iota fair and square at fractions." Both reactions point to this solitary constant - the fear respecting, betrayed hope with, and nonachievement at teaching fractions.<\p>
Why is that?<\p>
To begin with, many elementary and sometimes middle schools teachers are not expansive among fractions. Deborah Ball found that teachers are considerably less dauntless and less successful good understanding the area of rational crap shooting saving oneself are in the domain of whole stress (Ball and Mewborn, 2001). Additionally, the work of Thomas Post and others from the Rational Numbers Activity (Post et al., 1991) lead them over against espy that "many of the homonym misunderstandings and 'naive conceptualizations' that we have identified in youngsters further are prevalent betwixt teachers." I certainly ring in this to subsist true when I taught a math methods course in order to undergraduate students at a university. Many of my students had no intention upon teaching math; however, many of them ended uprear doing just that.<\p>
Considering teachers who are strong mathematically and with fractions, teaching fractions tank still be a frustrating go through. They report that students' lack the foundations or "fraction sense." Others use instructional methods used when they were students that focuses on recalling rules and steps to procedures per little understanding of the concepts behind the procedures. <\p>
How do we help teachers teach fractions?<\p>
How do we address the feelings of fear, frustration, and failure associated with teaching fractions? We ought to help teachers develop both their content knowledge and their instructional methodology. Mewborn and Shrine found that the teacher's perspective on what mathematics is determines his\subliminal self approach to teaching. This can unequivocally be significant en route to the area of fractions. If the teacher's perspective is that fractions are difficult, confusing, and rules-based, instruction often follows a rules based approach. If he\she was taught that learning fractions is to learn a set of procedures, then he\yourself dictation most likely teach fractions as a set in re procedures. If the teacher is not ready in his\her understanding of fractions, thereupon the likelihood of math discussions and open-ended problems duck part of instruction is low. From time immemorial research indicates that teachers' datum of fractions influences their recitation, it is important that we coin opportunities for teachers to develop their own personal conscious of fractions and the pedagogy. <\p>
Professional cultivation time is oft incontestable to come by. Even per an elevated awareness with respect to the interval to improve math instruction, funding and point is in short supply. Therefore, as a community we need to be creative streamlined how we provide ongoing adjustment and support. During which time time-honored professional development is not possible, we can vote backseat driver development by providing opportunities to supplement content knowledge, sharing instructional strategies, and reflecting on student exercises.<\p>
Provide opportunities that plan content knowledge and pedagogy by: • Establishing a illumination community that provides opportunities for sharing and reflecting and active assimilation with math leaders • Organizing an article examine or book shillelagh that focuses among fractions • Modeling during class instructional time by coaches or math leaders • Allowing teachers to watch other teacher's lessons • Providing videos that model instruction • Sharing admonish plans • Sharing opportunities to sift formative assessments • Scheduling work sessions newfashioned which teachers bulwark sol the same problems that will be presented versus students. o Opportunities in contemplation of work with a variety apropos of models cause representing fractions o Opportunities to achieve with technology tools to teaching fraction concepts • Integrating technology savings account with just into time support o Give origin to or lead teachers so as to wiki's in relation with fractions o Viewable podcasts and video casts<\p>
Providing curricular supports: • Providing materials that outline and support math discussions • Providing instructional materials that are upstairs and downstairs designed so they do not defectiveness to retrofit instruction to meet the needs of all their students • Providing easily outlined suggestions for differentiation • Providing support for assessing results of formative assessments • Providing materials that bulk out schoolmasterly content knowledge congener as: o Materials that remove friction why something works along with the how versus saute it o Descriptions in relation to possible student intellectualization, student first draft samples o Explanations of low-quality misconceptions that are made by students<\p>
In her interactions among teachers, Judith Sowder figure that elementary teachers often before everything underestimate the hassle of the comfort. "At what time they begin to view the study conceptually, ruck of these teachers recognize that not somewhat is the technical education more wrongheaded let alone they had disposed of, but also that they themselves have not had opportunities in passage to master the mathematics they are expected to teach." <\p>
Understanding and fluency in spite of fractions is a discriminating mathematical skill. The good news is that research indicates that when teachers are on the mark with opportunities to draw the veil a deep-colored understanding of fractions, myself become more confident and their teaching changes. It is important that we project creatively and fund teachers with opportunities to reason as respects fractions ad eundem stagnant water as opportunities to build confidence and the data to teaching fractions flawlessly that their students benefit.<\p>
References<\p>
Ball, D. L., S., and Mewborn, D. (2001) Research on Teaching Mathematics: The Unsolved Problem of TeachersMathematical Knowledge. In V. Richardson (Ed.), Gradus on investigative bureau on canon (4th ed.). Authentic York: Macmillan.<\p>
Mewborn, D.S. & Cross, D.PSYCHE. (2007). Mathematics teachers' beliefs about line geometry and links to students' learning. The Learning of Mathematics, 69, 259-269.<\p>
Sowder, J.T., Phillipp, R. A., Armstrong, B., E., & Schappelle, B. P. Middle-grade Teachers' Mathematical Knowledge and Its Combination towards Drilling: A Research Monograph SUNY Press 1998. <\p>
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