When: Tuesday, January 29th at 6pm.
What: All undergraduate math ed students are invited! Come play games and grab a slice (or three) of pizza. See Miranda or Katelyn for more details.
It is time for the first Begles of the New Year! Thanks to Dr. Denise Spangler who has opened her home (please contact MESA for address) to us for our first Begles PotLuck of 2019! Like past years, we will combine this with hosting doctoral student recruits.
Dinner will be provided by Dr. Spangler. However, if you want to bring a special dish to share, you are more than welcome.
If possible, please complete the sign-up by next Tuesday, January 22nd. Hope you can make it and thanks for letting us know! To RSVP, use this Google Sheet. Please let us know if you will attend and, like always, bring friends, family, and significant others.
Friendly Parking Notice from Dr.Spangler: People can park in the driveway or on the street. Just be considerate and do not park directly across from someone else’s driveway, as that makes it difficult for them to get out.
Come support our colloquium event!
November 5th, 2018
3:30 pm colloquium (4:30 pm Q&A)
Aderhold room G5 (224 for Q&A)
“Taking Learning Trajectories to Scale in a Digital Learning System for Middle School Math”
This talk reports on the design and implementation of Math-Mapper6-8, a digital learning system hosting a learning map organized around nine big ideas, learning clusters and constructs. Underlying each construct is a learning trajectory (LT) and its associated CCSS-M standards. It is accompanied by a diagnostic assessment system for use within classroom instruction showing progress along the LTs. The talk will focus on applying the validation framework to ratio reasoning and process of continuous validation, stressing the critical role of the interdisciplinary collaboration between learning scientists and psychometricians.
Please RSVP to attend MESA’s fundraiser night at Jason’s Deli on 10/25 between 5PM and 10PM! We need at least 20 RSVPs by 10/22 to make the event happen! RSVP here:
https://www.groupraise.com/events/74935
Jason’s Deli is located at 140 Alps Rd, Athens, GA 30606
That’s right! It’s time TO BATTLE! Graduates and Faculty vs. Undergraduates in a winner take all kickball game! Winners get control of the Golden Abacus and bragging rights until spring! Here are the details:
Date: Saturday, October 20th
Game Location: Intramural Fields (Field #4)
Cookout Location: Family & Graduate Housing Community Center
Schedule:
10:15AM – Warm Ups & Socializing
11:00AM (prompt) – THE BATTLE
12:30PMish – Graduate & Faculty Celebratory Cookout Party
12:30PMish – Undergraduate Pity Cookout Party (same location as above cookout party)
To RSVP, go here. Can’t wait to see you there!
Unable to make the First Year Teachers’ Panel? Interested in what recent UGA graduates have to say about their experiences in secondary mathematics classrooms? This video is for you! Enjoy!
The link to the video can also be found here: https://youtu.be/DqFMiv2sfVk
Thank you to the teachers who took the time out of their crazy schedules to talk to MESA about their experiences!
It is time for the first Begles of the New Year! Dr. Denise Spangler have opened doors (118 Green Top Way Athens GA 30605) this time to us for our Begles Potluck on Friday, Jan 26th, starting at 5:30PM. Please sign up to bring something for the pot luck here:
https://docs.google.com/
We hope you will help us spread the word to other MESA members and Math & Science Education faculty, staff, and students! We also hope to see you there!
We are excited to announce that Dr. Michael Oehrtman from Oklahoma State University will be visiting next week and giving a colloquium!
When: Tuesday, January 31st 4pm
Where: Aderhold Room 229
What: The talk title and abstract will to be sent later this week
Dr. Oehrtman is also available to talk with students and faculty outside of the scheduled colloquium. Please send us an email to let us know if you would like to join Dr. Oehrtman for lunch, dinner, or discussion outside of the scheduled event.
We look forward to seeing you next week.
Monday, January 9th, 4pm Room 229, Aderhold Hall
Double negative: Two classroom episodes, two analytic frameworks, and two pedagogical recommendations concerning negative number operations
Abstract:
The teaching and learning of negative integer operations brings into play many important issues in mathematics education. These include the generalization and revision of prior knowledge about natural numbers, the teaching of material that is conventional rather than provable, the use of patterns as a form of justification, and the acceptance of “numbers” whose mathematical reality stems from an axiomatic system rather than a concrete physical model. Anna Sfard has written that “learning about negative numbers involves a transition to a new, incommensurable discourse.”
I will present a tenth-grade classroom episode introducing negative integer exponents, analyzing the teacher’s strategies and the students’ reactions in the framework of the Necessity Principle of Harel’s DNR system, which states: In order for students to learn what we intend to teach them, they must have a need for it, where “need” means intellectual need, not social or economic need. This will be compared and contrasted with a similar episode on negative integer multiplication analyzed by Sfard in terms of her own “commognitive” framework. I will suggest reasons why pattern-based justifications may not address students’ intellectual needs, and alternative pedagogical strategies for promoting student reasoning about new mathematical conventions.
The talk is based on joint work with Evan Fuller and Guershon Harel.