NCTM Opens "Reasoning and Sense Making" Task Library

The focus at the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics has been on reasoning and sense making, arguably the most relevant components of a solid mathematics education. Five short books were published under the "Focus in High School Mathematics" banner addressing mathematical reasoning during the period 2009 - 2011. Now, the Council has made available a set of nine lessons (likely to grow in number) that highlight reasoning and link to the Common Core Standards. Worth a look for current and future teachers of high school mathemtics. http://www.nctm.org/rsmtasks/

quadratic in vertex form

A typical task in algebra is to convert a quadratic function to "vertex form." In this form, the coordinates of the vertex stand out. Here are the steps shown on an example function:

MyMathLab Registration

New to MyMathLab? Here is a link to a YouTube video that will help you register before your first class meeting in MATH 080 or MATH 090.

Good luck with your math studies.

Pacheco Canyon Fire June 18, 2011

Pacheco Canyon Fire from Eldorado 3, a photo by Mike Shelly on Flickr.

This is a closer view of the same scenery (as in the previous post) taken a couple of days later. The Pacheco Canyon fire began earlier in the day on June 18.

Sangre de Christo Mountains

Sangre de Christo Mountains, a photo by Mike Shelly on Flickr.

View of the mountains taken from Eldorado (southeast of Santa Fe), June, 2011.

Computers in Mathematics? A TED Talk

Conrad Wolfram, of Wolfram Research (see http://www.wolframalpha.com), spoke in July, 2010, at TED Global. His remarks propose the value of a dramatic shift in the way we teach mathematics. While you may not agree with some of what he suggests, his comments are certainly thought-provoking, and worth seventeen minutes of your time. I encourage you to watch . . . and think.

Courses 24-7

It seems that students have less to complain about these days. At least when it comes to the availability of quality instruction, that is. All of the online resources take away the traditional complaint, "My teacher doesn't teach." Don't like the presentation offered by your instructor? Take a look at one of the many options for free, open courses offered by a variety of universities. Here are some links:

• Carnegie Mellon University Open Learning Initiative (http://oli.web.cmu.edu/openlearning/)
• MIT OpenCourseWare (http://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm)
• Stanford University on iTunes (http://itunes.stanford.edu/)
• The Open University (UK) OpenLearn (http://openlearn.open.ac.uk/)
• Tufts University OpenCourseWare (http://ocw.tufts.edu/)
• UC Berkeley Webcast/Courses (http://webcast.berkeley.edu/courses.php)
• UC Irvine OpenCourseWare (http://ocw.uci.edu/)
• Utah State OpenCourseWare (http://ocw.usu.edu/)
• iTunes U (http://www.apple.com/education/itunes-u/whats-on.html#itb-topten)

And even with all of these resources, your instructor is still an important piece of the puzzle. Work hard, work smart, use the available tools.

Learn!

Why Teachers Require Group Work

As a teacher, I have always found it interesting when students resist the request to work in groups. This is particularly true in an age of almost constant contact with others via e-mail, text messages, Twitter, Facebook, and the list goes on.

I found this talk by Steven Johnson ("Where Good Ideas Come From") recently posted at TED.com. From the first coffee house opened in England in 1650 to GPS, Steven makes a great case for collaboration. I encourage you to take a look:

We Seem to Need More Pirates!

Today is Talk Like a Pirate Day, and some newly released data suggests that pirates (or the lack of them) impact the world's climate.  Take a look at this TreeHugger entry:

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/09/talk-like-a-pirate-day.php

Association . . . Causation . . . Arrgh, what's the difference?

Does Gun Ownership Lead to Increased Death By Firearm?

The recent controversy over the right to openly carry firearms at the Royal Oak "Arts, Beats and Eats Festival" led me to take a look at the relationship between the availability of guns and death by firearm. Using a couple of datasets available on the web, I compared states on these two variables.

The report was created using StatCrunch software, available on the web. Here is a link to the report. I am interested in your reactions to the report, and (for the statistics students out there) the final paragraph suggests a nice topic for a statistical project.

Welcome back to school!