Teachers play a vital role in their students' learning. Beyond that, they have a responsibility to help all students feel valued and integrated in classroom learning activities. The following includes some helpful suggestions to encourage math teachers to facilitate active learning in all students.
Illustrate How Different Cultures Learn Math
In order to develop a multicultural approach to teaching math, a teacher must first get to know the students.Once familiar with the backgrounds and cultures of her students, a teacher can then do some preliminary research about how the cultures represented by the students in her class learn math. Then, a teacher can share this information with the class as a kind of comparison/ contrast lesson between different cultures. Students can be informed that even though, for example, multiplication is taught in a variety of ways, the correct answers remain the same in any culture.
A teacher can also research the mathematical contributions of each culture and incorporate this information into the classroom lesson. By doing this, a teacher validates and includes students whose cultures vary from those with a Euro-American background. Teachers can then work individually with their culturally diverse students to help improve their self esteem and attitude towards math in general.
Use Manipulatives to Appeal to Students with Different Learning Styles
It is important that a teacher addresses the various learning styles of the diverse students in her class. Because some students are visual learners, a teacher can seek out videos and visual representations of math. For example, posters can decorate the classroom which show men and woman from a variety of cultures working in different careers involving mathematics. For aural learners, a teacher can repeat instructions and examples in several formats to ensure comprehension. Or, word problems can be presented on a cassette tape to small cooperative groups of students. If students need to hear the problem again, they just rewind the tape. To accommodate kinesthetic learners, there are many hands-on mathematical manipulatives available. Anything that involves students handling objects will help facilitate learning and put students in control of their educational experience.
Manipulatives are a great way to make mathematics more fun for children. Because many students enjoy movement as well as working with their hands while learning, manipulatives can maintain their interest for longer periods of time than if there are simply observing a teacher demonstration and then practicing individual problems. Importantly, manipulatives successfully make the abstract concepts of math more concrete.
Examples of Math Activities Using Manipulatives
Here are examples of classroom activities that involves manipulatives. An abacus can be used to show students a different way of performing the basic math functions of adding and subtracting. This method may appeal to some learners better than the traditional Euro-American method, regardless of their cultural background. Additionally, the art of origami has great potential to excite and amuse students while they are actively learning. By creating three dimensional objects with pieces of paper and working with geometric shapes, students can see mathematics put to work. This activity can encourage students to see how math is used and its real life applications. When using manipulatives, students can work in cooperative groups and learn that math, along with the problem-solving involved, can be interactive and fun.
Active student-centered engagement will quickly create a positive learning environment for students of all ages and cultural backgrounds. Finding ways to incorporate manipulatives in the math classroom will further enhance this engagement. Further, creating a classroom structure that involves student interaction with a group focus will help unify a classroom, encouraging students to see commonalities with each other rather than differences.
Thadra Petkus - Thadra Petkus is currently a freelance writer, English teacher and mentor. Although she has taught students from age two through ...
