My "Greatest Learning"

Out of all the courses we did this semester, this was the one I was definitely the most nervous about.  I kept thinking, "what if I mess up an equation in class? Everyone will think I don't understand math. I am so stressed!".  However, this is not at all what happened.  There was no 'being called on' to answer questions, or any pressure of any kind.  Instead, we worked with our colleagues to find solutions to problems we will face as mathematics teachers, and there are many.

One major issue is "what is the right way?".  What is the right way to teach fractions, multiplication, division, geometry, and so on.  What method will students understand best? What gives the best answers?  As future teachers, it is easy to get really wrapped up in this problem because we of course want to be effective teachers.  It is so easy to get so caught up in this that we forget to remember that there are all sorts of acceptable methods.  Each child in your classroom will learn in different ways, some will be visual learners, kinesthetic learners, spatial learners, etc, and it is important to keep this in mind when teaching mathematics.  If one child uses manipulatives, one uses pictorial representations, and another uses an equation, but all three get the same answer, which child is right?  The answer is simple: all three are correct.  If a child can demonstrate how they came to an answer, and they can demonstrate understanding of the topic then they are correct.  

As a young student myself, this was never the case.  There was always one right way, more than likely our teachers preferred way, of doing things.  However, this "one way only" method leaves out a lot of children, and causes a lot of math frustration that is so commonly seen in a classroom.  My "greatest learning" in this course is that I do not want to be that teacher.  I want to be a teacher who shows my class that there are many different approaches to getting solutions, and to give them the resources necessary to find the strategy that works best for them.  Math should be hands on, fun, and meaningful to students, not forced, pressured, and traumatizing.

The approaches I have learned in this course have really shifted my thinking.  I was always only exposed to one way of teaching math, but now I know that there are so many other more meaningful and engaging approaches that I can take to make my own classroom a positive learning environment.  It is not always about getting the right answer and using the right method, it is about gaining the experience and being able to see the mathematics that is around us, and understanding that we all have the knowledge and power to excel in this subject.