The Swun Math Model

Mathematics has become a very large part of society today. From the moment children learn the basic principles of math to the day those children become working members of society, everyone has used mathematics at one point in their life. The crucial time for learning mathematics is during the childhood years when the concepts and principles of mathematics can be processed more easily. However, this time in life is also when the point in a person’s life where information has to be broken down to the very basics, as children don’t have an advanced capacity to understand as adults do. Mathematics, an essential subject, must be taught in such a way that children can understand and remember.

According to Alan Bass, math is the building block upon which every science originates; which opens the doors to higher education and better income potential. However there are many high earners that never graduated college like Albert Einstein who states “everybody is a genius. But, if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid”. Not everyone is good at math.

Disturbingly, “nearly one-fifth of high school students and over 50 percent of middle school students are enrolled in math classes whose teachers neither majored or minored in math” (Drew, 2011, p.9). In 2000, 31 percent of high

The project aimed to develop a series of connected learning experiences in a simulated three-dimensional context that applied mathematics and made it relevant so students would learn to identify and solve real world problems. The project was intended to be a comprehensive yearlong curriculum that integrated language arts, mathematics and the math practices aligned with the Common Core State Standards and made learning

“In 1995, Minnesota fourth graders placed below average for the United States on an international math test” (Ripley, 2013, p. 73). Two years after, Minnesota used international benchmarks to create and update their math standards. In 2007, students from Minnesota were performing as well as students in Japan. One major contributor of the math success story of Minnesota is they made their education system stronger by creating a set of clear and targeted standards. This allowed all students to learn the same content, there was less math objectives so teachers could spend enough time teaching one concept, and teachers only had to follow one set of standards opposed to state and local

Many students at the elementary level perform poorly in mathematics because when they complete kindergarten; they acquire inadequate knowledge of basic mathematics. Due to lack of enough skills and concepts, these students continue to experience this problem even in upper elementary school (Duncan et al, 2007).By the fourth grade, these students performance becomes very poor such that they are not expected to improve when they get to the next grade. The major program to improve student’s achievement in mathematics is the introduction of more intense professional development in teacher-led instruction, providing examples, and teaching problem-solving strategies for all

The Case of Randy Harris describes the lesson of a middle school mathematics teacher, and how he uses diagrams, questions, and other methods to guide his students to a better understanding. Throughout his case study, Harris’ methods could be easily compared to that of the Effective Mathematics Teaching Practices. There are eight mathematical teaching practices that support student learning, most of which are performed throughout Randy Harris’ lesson. Harris didn’t perform each teaching practice perfectly, despite doing the majority of them throughout his lessons. The following are examples of how Randy Harris implemented the eight mathematical teaching practices into his lesson, and how the ones that were neglected should have been

This article described the how a group of educators came together to introduce problem solving to third-grade students throughout the year as a means to teach other concepts instead of just teaching this concept when it was reached in the textbook. The educators were in groups of three with a mathematical consultant. During the course of this project the educators met with the mathematical consultant every four weeks to discuss how students responses and their presentations. During these meeting the educators would often make adjustment to better fit the students. The article contained subsections about the special spark, the before, during, and after of the problem

This paper addresses situations where a private foundation designs an initiative and awards grants to a number of sites to participate in the initiative in their local setting. The basic ideas are applicable to other situations.

When educating students, it is essential to their growth, that teachers have the ability to learn and grow with their students. Every child learns, thinks, and comprehends differently; therefore, the same material should be taught in multiple ways. For example, in my Math 106 class, all students solve the same problem, the teacher then has a few students explain and depict the different ways they received the correct answer. When a student has a difficult time explaining their method, Mrs. Graybeal provides encouragement and guidance; thus. Also, students who are having a difficult time solving the problem used one of the methods provided by a peer to help them comprehend and solve the problem. Math 106 teaches future educators the

I have always considered myself a mathematician; however, that did not keep this subject from being difficult. Math has a glorious way of growing you up. For me, it began in the first grade where I was introduced to the multiplication table; my instructor used to test us with mental exams and I remember enjoying it like I was playing a game and winning.

The Indians created their own type of arithmetic called Bakhsali and they had to learn to solve fractions and multiply them. Hindus was one of the people to uses this math to solve many different problems like foiling and solving for x. Another important figure is Donald Knuth who came up with exponents they were originally pictured as 3 3. The more arrows placed in between the threes the more exponents were stacked on each other. Later on Kaplan shows a property of zero, he is setting quadratics equal to zero so they can be

for the SARA problem solving model to work there a few steps that it needs to

Maths is ubiquitous in our lives, but depending on the learning received as a child it could inspire or frighten. If a child has a negative experience in mathematics, that experience has the ability to affect his/her attitude toward mathematics as an adult. Solso (2009) explains that math has the ability to confuse, frighten, and frustrate learners of all ages; Math also has the ability to inspire, encourage and achieve. Almost all daily activities include some form of mathematical procedure, whether people are aware of it or not. Possessing a solid learning foundation for math is vital to ensure a lifelong understanding of math. This essay will discuss why it is crucial to develop in children the ability to tackle problems with initiative and confidence (Anghileri, 2006, p. 2) and why mathematics has changed from careful rehearsal of standard procedures to a focus on mathematical thinking and communication to prepare them for the world of tomorrow (Anghileri).

The lack of adopted curriculum also means that most, if not all, teachers are supplementing both materials and instructional routines. These students need to pass the state-mandated Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA) which requires completion of a problem-solving performance task. Students need to know which operation(s) to use (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and/or division) and how to apply them appropriately. This problem has