Mathematics and Statistics Regional Newsletter • Jim Hogan
Information for leaders of Mathematics and Statistics in secondary schools | Term 1 | February 2014
Dates to Note
BOPMA - Dates for 2014
Thurs 13 March: Committee meeting at Te Puke high School. (Date to be confirmed)
Thurs 22 May: AGM & Dinner
Thurs 07 August: Committee meeting at Rotorua Lakes High School
Tues 19 August: MathsMind (Western Bay)
Thurs 11 September: Committee meeting at Te Puke High School
Friday 21 November 2014: BoPMA Conference
WAIMAT - TBA
HAWKES BAY – get that association up and running!
GISBORNE – get that association up and running!
National Workshops for Central North Region
There is ONE workshop that will be delivered nationally by the facilitators. Other factors limit how many sessions. In Central North there are 3 opportunities to go to the workshop. Email ASAP so I have an idea of numbers please. It will be a bring your own lunch event but I will provide morning tea/coffee. There is NO CHARGE for this workshop, paid for by the SSA Contract, Team Solutions.
Hamilton – 13th May – Venue to be advised
Rotorua – 14th May – Venue to be advised
Napier – 15th May – Venue to be advised
Content: This may vary a little but at the moment this is what we have planned.
1. Building a Robust Junior Mathematics Programme
Backward mapping from senior to junior so that pathways, pre-requisites and development of concepts has been established. This is a fun learning session for teachers who have never approached schemes in this fashion. It is vital that programmes of learning support future pathways. If using algebra and geometry skills and knowledge are expected later then foundation work must be done. Problem solving is not something that is learned in one day at the beginning of Year 11.
2. Developing Literacy in Mathematics
Ongoing demand asks that more time been spent around this issue. Ways to help students become more familiar with the language and reading demands specific to mathematics and statistics. We usually do well on vocabulary, new terms and definitions but I do notice flimsy attention given to how to solve and express and answer to a problem. Remember all our standards are about solving problems.
3. Differentiation in the Classroom
Easy to say but is it easy top do? What in reality is this thing called differentiation. Do we already do it? Learners do have to progress through achievable stages. This is akin to the idea of “culturally responsive pedagogy” and has similar vague and many interpretations. Groups are good, a range of problems is good.
4. Beating a Pathway
More on Youth Guarantee and using the tools available in this session. The Ministry supports us in many ways. They pay for the nzmaths blog (which is why we monitor it and delete unhelpful comments) and have about 14 initiatives running at the moment all aiming to meet the 85% of 18yo in 2017 achievement target. The Youth Guarantee Pathways project is full of good information for teachers and students. More young people in productive employment will mean does mean better lives, a better economy and futures for all. We are kidding ourselves if this broad goal is not acceptable.
We can also discuss statistics, numeracy and new standards. Hopefully you will all have explored L3 last year! There will of course be time to network and discuss local issues and topical concerns.
NCEA ASSESSMENTS
The NZAMT Writing Group in AA have been busy and revised, written and amended assessments. It is a wise idea to join up with NZAMT as soon as you can and choose the assessments you wish to use later this year.
I see there is a selection of Pathway oriented assessments on TKI now as well. These were crafted by clever people and have an approved stamp if you do not modify them much. I Googled “tki assessments” but here is the website http://ncea.tki.org.nz/Resources-for-Internally-Assessed-Achievement-Standards/Mathematics-and-statistics
Keep a close eye on the nzmaths blog please. It is an open discussion and please keep comments positive and useful. Google “nzmaths” and explore the secondary “jigsaw piece” or http://www.nzmaths.co.nz/secondary-professional-learning-communities . There is a lot of good discussion on this blog about the standards. The SSAC facilitators (we are not called advisors any more) do monitor this blog and remove unhelpful comments and SPAM.
Prime SEARCH: http://www.mersenne.org/ My computer is working on 21181x226176868+1 as a prime possibility. It is finished 30 Jan and it is not prime. Join the search for a few more large primes. The largest so far discovered has over 17 million digits.
Report on BOPMA Conference Nov 2013
See www.bopma.co.nz for all resources given to us from the conference. The big BIG news is that a new Numeracy Book was released at this conference. It is available to all members of BOPMA (rest of NZ can become Associate Members…see website). I wrote a bit about numeracy and there are about 120 pages of resources and marking schedules from tried and tested assessments. It is only available as a web download but you can print prom the file.
Talk about Geometry and Measurement
INCOMING!
Sounds like a Radar on M.A.S.H. but every year we get a cohort of Year 9 students who bring with them a baffle of results, attitudes and expectations. As problem solvers in mathematics their favored strategy is typically adding. About 60% of Year 9 students, or more, select addition strategies as the way to solve a problem.
23rd Jan Prime Minister Announcement at Western Springs. beehive.govt.nz - Raising#B89AE WEBLINK • MORE BELOW
Recognising teachers and principals who do cause achievement is to be applauded of course. I wonder how the teachers will be measured? That was the first thought in this applied mathematicians head. Will it be absolute or relative? Some of the poorer schools I worked in last year showed some of the biggest shifts. Which had the better teacher?
Do teachers have time for another school? Who pays the release time? Who looks after the daily issues only a principal can deal with successfully. What will happen to a Lead Teacher’s reputation when they are absent for 2/5 days per week? Who pays for the travel from one school to the other? There is a confusion of issues and complications that will be worked out I am sure and then there is the “student centered learning” that we have been pushing since 2007 at least. Will my class like having another teacher for 2/5 days? In some cases that will mean two teachers sharing 50% of instruction with one class.
There has been plenty of public comment and many times I have read or heard mention of social inequity being seen as the underlying cause. This is a chicken and egg problem with the other side being the quality teaching/learning and achievement. A student with a better education will seek a better job, have higher expectations and is more likely to generate a better family environment for children. Which is the cause of change?
Overall it will be an interesting event to follow and help succeed. More research into achievement in mathematics, science and technology cannot be bad. I would like to research how problem based learning results in improved academic success or perhaps how becoming a multiplicative thinker as young as possible will see greater mathematics achievement. I am pleased that mathematics, science and technology have been prioritized but hope the school curriculums remain balanced.
Some ideas for Better Courses 2014.
Junior
• 3 week blocks of learning informed by data as to what students need to learn. Every student!
• The first block of three weeks design around problem solving and being a mathematician. Pentominoe investigation.
• Quiz sessions to develop MathMIND teams.
• Aussie Maths problems
• 3d model making sessions
• Create times to talk and know your students
• Problem of the day and curiosity corners.
• Split daily lessons into 10 - 15 minute sections.
Senior
• Expect to get L1 numeracy using achievement standards
• Year 11 courses to be quite general, opening doors
• Year 12 and 13 needs based for pathways
• Pathways that lead to opportunity and jobs
• 18 credits or so, no over or under loading!
• Seniors appreciate competitions, making things and puzzles.
On Line Courses
I completed the “How to Learn Maths” course http://online.stanford.edu/course/how-to-learn-math that “Stanford online” offered T3 2013. I can only recommend that when it comes up again make the effort and do the course.
Jo Boaler, who with others created the course, is now planning to offer a course for students. One aspect she is persistent about is developing a “Growth Mindset”. Carol Dweck developed these ideas and all material is available from her website http://www.mindsetworks.com/ or just Google “Brainology”. Join her website http://www.youcubed.org/ mailing list.
To quote “When students and educators have a growth mindset, they understand that intelligence can be developed. Students focus on improvement instead of worrying about how smart they are. They work hard to learn more and get smarter.”
What does a Growth Mindset School look like?
Administrators support teachers’ learning.
Teachers truly believe that all students can learn and succeed.
Parents support children’s learning both inside and outside the classroom.
Students are enthusiastic, hard-working, persistent learners and they take charge over their own success.
PISA 2012 •Try the test - Organisati#C08EC • JUST GOOGLE “PISA http://www.oecd.org/pisa/
Here are a few quotes from the full report. We have been saying a lot of this for a long time. The “Levels” are hard to align with NZC but are pretty much Level 1 = NZC Level 4 and Level 6 = NZC Level 6. The test is for Age 15 or Year 11 students.
Key Findings • Do Problem Solving •Be in class •ID Problems early and ACT •Everyone can improve • Mathematics indicates
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Team Solutions, 2013