New Insights & Theri Implications

New Insights and Their Implications - What did you learn from your peers, from the instructor, and/or the readings, about elementary school students, and/or about yourself, and the teaching and learning of math and what are their implications to teaching and learning mathematics?

Mathematics has never been an easy subject for myself. Since this class has started I have taken a different outlook on mathematics. I have learned that there are many ways to arrive at an answer and that each way is beneficial to the learner, if she/he can give an explanation at how they arrived at the answer. I have learned that some of the reasons I fear mathematics is because of the way I was taught at an early age. Having a math teacher who is good at his/her job is so important because in mathematics one concept builds upon others and if you are not understanding a concept you may need the additional help from the teacher. I remember there were times when I was in junior high and the teacher didn't get as far as he/she had hoped and that teacher would blow through the material like it was nothing. It was brutal and I didn't like it all. I felt like my learning was suffering because I didn't have the time to practice the material and the material was not presented in a learn able manner for me. I was a visual and hands on learner. When it came to math I needed lots of practice. I was accountable for learning the material if I didn't understand it. I would occasionally go in for help, but this did not work at all times. I believe this is where I started to fear mathematics. I knew later down the line, math would become harder and that there was nothing I could do, but relearn concepts from earlier years. This scared me. Integrating mathematics into a classroom is very important. Students need lots of hands on learning and ways to make the material relevant to their own life. The teacher needs to differentiate his/her instruction to meet all the needs that exist within a classroom. Mathematics can be fun and less intimidating if the teacher is good at her/her profession and allows for his/her students to learn alternative routes to an answer. Problem solving on your own can be very effective in learning how to think on your own and solve on your own. Math takes time and lots of practice.