60 minute special - Building a thriving teaching and learning

program for the HSC Mathematics General 1 Pathway

Mark GradyCoordinatorLachlan Macquarie College

My Background?

• DEC WSR Schools 1987 – 2007• Macquarie University 1990 - 1996• MBTHS 2007• Lachlan Macquarie College 2008

The General – General 1 Pathway

• What the BOS tells us

ATAR

ATAR X

A very brief reference to timingThe Preliminary Mathematics General course contains two Focus Studies that have been designed for approximately one-third of the course time: • Mathematics and Communication • Mathematics and Driving. (20 indicative hours each from 120)

The HSC Mathematics General 1 course contains four Focus Studies that have been designed for approximately two-thirds of the course time: • Mathematics and Design • Mathematics and Household Finance • Mathematics and the Human Body • Mathematics and Personal Resource Usage. (20 indicative hours each from 120)

What does this mean in terms of your school?50/60/70 min periods etc

• I do not like the format of the syllabus with both pathways in the same document. Be very careful that you are reading the information for the correct pathway.

Danger! Danger!

A true story – with a simple message

Relevance and engagement!!

2 Examples• FM2 Investing

money (Prelim)• The principal focus of this topic

is the use of formulae and tables to perform calculations related to the value of investments over a period of time.

• 5 cards and Number/ problem solving. An intro to problem solving by touching on deciding what is relevant, what isn’t and patterns. This falls into ‘Suggested Applications” under AM1 (Algebraic Modelling)

Black 1 2 3 4 5Red 6 7 8 9 10

NASDAQ

Video said $100 billion valuation

Resources to get you started

320 plus membersBelinda Conway To join, just send me an email at mark.grady@det.nsw.edu.au

MAANG - Axiom

• The DEC’s micro blogging site– 282 members– Great for professional

discussions– Excellent for resources and

sharing ideas

• Simon Job’s Mathlinks

Active Data• Search Active data in TaLE.

– The matchbox factory and catch my fall

Laptop WRAPS• TaLE search on “DER Wrap” for maths or this

– Stem and Leaf plots– Taxing times– Puzzling Probability– Talking Trigonometry (replace slideshow with a movie! Coming up..)– Under the surface– Investing wisely– Parallelendicular

Animoto or laptop movie making software

• “Turn your photos, video clips, and music into stunning video masterpieces to share with everyone. Fast, free, and shockingly easy!”

How could video software be used?

• Students make a video to demonstrate their understanding of a concept. This could be a part of a lesson or assessment task. E.g. – identify and use the correct formula to solve practical area problems

(MM2)– estimate areas and volumes (MM2)– Digital download and file storage (FSCo2)– describe, for a given histogram, the shape of the distribution and

how the shape relates to features of the associated population or sample (DS4CEC)

Etc………Like this?

FSCo2 (Focus study: Maths and Communication)

Summary and ComparisonAnimoto • Easy, though limited to 30 sec and SD

for free version

Windows Live Movie Maker• On DER machines. Simple to use

(drag and drop timeline based), but can be a little clunky on more advanced applications. HD, no time limit

Adobe Premier Elements• On DER machines. More sophisticated

software. Does more than the others, but requires more background knowledge. HD, no time limit.

Let’s make a quick movie!

And assessing it – easy!

Laptop Software – beyond Geogbra etc

• SRN (teacher presentation tool)• Google Sketchup (measurement)• Google Earth (measurement)• Freemind or other mind mapping tools

Other Ideas – if only there were time to demonstrate!

• QR Codes (orienteering, clue based activities)

• Infographics• Comic creation tools• Cool tools for schools• Ipad/Ipod Apps?• Gapminder• Quincunx (Galton Board)

Don’t be afraid to try

• Failure is the fertilizer of innovation. When it comes to integrating new approaches into the curriculum this is often the case. We rarely hit a home run the first time we try out a new tool in the classroom.

The first attempt isn’t always what you envisaged

I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed. Michael Jordan

To build a thriving program• Ensure you follow the syllabus and

course assessment guidelines

• Connected classroom? (other schools or someone relevant to a topic studied)

• Use a variety of assessment tools (it is a CEC HSC Course)– Self assessment– Peer assessment– Syllabus discusses an outcomes diary

for a portfolio

And…• Join an online sharing network

– Axiom– Wiki

• Go beyond textbooks– Video software– Web tools– Multimedia presentations– Edmodo, Moodle or other online

collaborative tools

• Excursions, guest speakers

And finally..• Embed quality resources within programs for longevity

• Develop or foster a culture of collaboration and sharing within your faculty

• Make their learning meaningful. Report findings to Exec with recommendations etc (surveys, water, electricity usage, be a smarter school with resource usage)

• Have some fun with this course

• Relevance, Relevance and Relevance