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Flipped Classroom Materials for Statistics

Flipped Classroom Materials for Statistics

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Last semester I flipped my Statistics classroom, and was really happy with the results. I have put together some pages explaining exactly how I flipped the classroom, with links/descriptions of documents that I used along with a calendar showing how I we covered the material. You can find it all at http://georgewoodbury.com/flip I will be adding more to the site as I make my way through a second semester of flipping that classroom – this time in a short-term (8…

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Why >= How: Homework 

Why >= How: Homework 

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I hear many instructors lamenting that their students are not doing their homework to the instructor’s satisfaction. If we agree that homework is an important part of the learning process, then it is important to tackle this problem.  Do your students know why they are doing homework? Don’t be so sure that they do. Many students do it because it’s part of the game, because they are told to do it, because they get points for doing it. They should…

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Learning Catalytics Questions

Learning Catalytics Questions

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There is a growing pool of questions available inside Learning Catalytics. Some have been generated by the publisher, others have been generated by the community of instructors using Learning Catalytics. For my first Flipped Classroom I wrote my own questions (sample vs population, descriptive vs inferential, levels of data, …) and it was very easy to do. However, for day 2, I used 7 questions created by the publisher/author and the community of instructors and those questions were outstanding. The…

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Day One Activities – Focus on Math Anxiety

Day One Activities – Focus on Math Anxiety

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At the developmental level it should be no surprise that many of the students have feelings of anxiety related to math. Here are a few of the things I do on the first day of class to help students deal with these feelings. “Heads Down, Hands Up” After I take roll on the first day of class, I ask the students to put their heads on their desk with their eyes closed. I then ask students to raise their hands…

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My 3 R’s and Mindset

My 3 R’s and Mindset

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I took last semester off (bank leave), so Monday will be the first day teaching students in about eight months. What did I do during that time? I worked on the three R’s: resting, reading, and redesigning my classes. Resting I have taught a full load of classes every semester (and nearly every summer) since I started at College of Sequoias back in 1994. I did not think I needed a break because I did not feel the burnout that…

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Mathematician in History Assignment

Mathematician in History Assignment

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I’m heading out to see The Man Who Knew Infinity this afternoon, and it reminded me of this blog post I did about my “Mathematician in History” assignments. (I read the book, and I give it my highest recommendation!) I hope you enjoy this post. – George ****************************************************************************** One key to building a sense of community is having assignments and projects that encourage groups of students to work together. One of my favorite projects is the Mathematician in History project….

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Do It MY Way? No, Do It YOUR Way!

Do It MY Way? No, Do It YOUR Way!

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I was at a session at a small math conference last fall, and the presenter was going through their list of things students must do to learn mathematics. When the presenter said that students had to do things according to the instructor’s method (“They have to do it MY way!”), I am sure my jaw fell to the floor. In my experience you have to let students think and experiment in order for them to learn and understand mathematics. As…

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Letting Students Choose What They Want To Learn

Letting Students Choose What They Want To Learn

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After 22 years at my college I finally took a bank leave this semester. Although there has been a lot of relaxing and traveling, I used my time off to do some reading and thinking about how I wanted to improve my math and statistics classes. In particular I wanted to help my students grow, learn to think, and take away skills that they would find valuable outside of the classroom. One of my ex-students (who I respect a great…

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Math Education Lesson at the Museum

Math Education Lesson at the Museum

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Last month my wife and I visited the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto. We saved their Pop Art collection for the end because it’s a light way to finish a day at the museum. We were admiring an Andy Warhol piece on Elvis when a guide walked up to us and asked us if we’d like to learn about a piece in the next room. We love to learn, so we took her up on the offer. It did not…

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#ICTCM16 – My Session & Schedule

#ICTCM16 – My Session & Schedule

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Looking forward to my session on the importance of student discovery in developmental math at ICTCM this weekend in Atlanta. I will be sharing innovative approaches for getting your students involved in the discovery of material. When students are engaged and thinking the chances for understanding and success dramatically increase. The session is on Saturday morning from 9-9:30. I will be walking through Interactive Statistics in the exhibitor’s room from 10-10:30 on Friday morning. This is the new product I…

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