Math class goes like this: Teachers give problems; students do problems; teachers give the answers.\u00a0 Teachers give more problems; students do more problems; teachers give more answers. Repeat.\u00a0 Eventually, students get a grade. And then they know if they are good at math.\u00a0 My students know this is how it is by the time they start middle school.\u00a0 But in my class it doesn\u2019t work that way.\u00a0 Sure, I give problems, and yes, students do problems. And I have answers, but I keep them to myself. Knowing their answers make sense has to come from students themselves. My job is not to let them know whether they are right or wrong, but instead my job is to convince them that they have power and control over their own problem solving.<\/p>\n
This may seem strange.\u00a0 You may wonder, \u201cHow will the students know they are right if the teacher doesn\u2019t give the answers?\u201d\u00a0 Here\u2019s what I wonder \u201cThe last time you had to figure something out, how did you know you were right?\u201d\u00a0 I\u2019m guessing you probably didn\u2019t find someone in a position of authority and ask them to look it up in an answer key to confirm that you are a good problem-solver.\u00a0 Genuine problems come our way without solutions.\u00a0 If we had solutions, they wouldn\u2019t be problems.\u00a0 I\u2019d be willing to bet you did one of the following as you solved the last problem mattered to you:<\/p>\n
My math class offers students the opportunity to do what we all do when we have problems.\u00a0 And if they knew I would provide answers as soon as they get stuck, the game would be over.\u00a0 They wouldn’t that they are in charge of solving the \u00a0problems that matter to them.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Math class goes like this: Teachers give problems; students do problems; teachers give the answers.\u00a0 Teachers give more problems; students do more problems; teachers give more answers. Repeat.\u00a0 Eventually, students get a grade. And then they know if they are good at math.\u00a0 My students know this is how it is by the time they … Continue reading Solving Problems that Matter<\/span>