Strategies for Teaching Math to Middle and High School Students With Special Needs

This chapter is designed to inform and educate 6th- through 12th-grade teachers on how to provide math activities for students with an identified learning disability as defined by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The chapter provides an introduction to the topic, background information on teaching math at the secondary level, research-based instructional strategies that can be used for teaching math to students with identified special needs, and specific manipulatives that can be created and utilized to teach the Common Core State Standards in Mathematics to this population. Additional resources and readings are included as well.

Functions and Frequency of Using Code-switching in CLIL Lesson (Case Study, teaching Math (CLIL) in the private school, Tbilisi)

The aim of the present study is to investigate the sociolinguistic functions and frequency of Teacher’s Code Switching (CS) in the content and language integrated (CLIL) Lesson. Furthermore, our purpose is to reveal students’ and teacher’s attitudes towards teacher’s code-switching in CLIL lesson. After a brief review of the literature concerning CLIL and the issue of code-switching the case study of teaching Math (Educational discourse) in one of the private schools in Tbilisi will be outlined as data, gathered by means of anonymous questionnaires, which were administered among students in the abovementioned Math classes. Moreover, the qualitative research aims to single out the number of teacher’s CS examples and analyze the interview with math’s teacher. The results show that there are 36 cases of teacher using L1 (Georgian) in 10 lessons (9 hours). Math’s teacher’s CS behavior mostly serves (1) the conversational function of interjection; (2) the classroom functions of introducing unfamiliar materials and topics, explaining difficult concepts, maintaining classroom discipline and the structure of the lesson; The teacher and 13 students have negative attitudes towards using only Georgian in teaching Math’s. The higher level of English the students have the more negative is attitude towards using Georgian in the classroom. Although all the students were Georgian, their competence in English is almost as high as in their mother tongue, therefore they consider English as an inseparable part of their identities.

Making Sense to Make Change: How Community College Faculty Perceptions of Math Contextualization Shape Instructional Change

Objective: In numerous calls for reform to community college math instruction, contextualization has been identified as an effective approach to teaching and learning. Yet, little is known about how faculty contend with math contextualization and how they make decisions about its adoption. This study explored how community college faculty teaching math make sense of contextualization as a result of related professional development, and how faculty make decisions about whether to apply contextualization to teaching math as they make sense of contextualization and other individual or organizational factors. Method: This study adopted a case study approach, drawing upon interviews, observations, and professional development materials from two large, comprehensive 2-year colleges in a Midwestern state. Results: Findings revealed five themes under two main umbrellas: making sense and making change. Three interconnected themes comprised making sense: orientation to contextualization, prior teaching and field experiences, and dual identities as teacher and learner. Two themes characterized making change: external and structural constraints of implementing contextualization and comfort level in operationalizing contextualization. Contributions: This study illuminated the complex process of faculty sensemaking of math contextualization, and how this sensemaking, in light of individual and organizational factors, shapes their decisions around math instructional change.

CREATIVITY IN TEACHING MATH TO STUDENTS WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES

Developing creativity and thinking outside the box is key in modern education. When students are able to combine ideas, techniques, approaches that enable them to solve problems in different ways we can assert that they were taught creativity in their mathematical instructions. Most tests for evaluation of mathematical creativity measure the flexibility, fluency, and originality of student responses. Creativity tends to be hindered in the case of students with mild intellectual disabilities. Studies on the application of creativity in the teaching of mathematics to students with intellectual disabilities are limited. The article analyzed the academic achievement in mathematics and development of students' creativity.

Teachers’ Perception toward the Use of Ethnomathematics Approach in Teaching Math

Albeit the research on the ethnomathematics have extensively undertaken, little empirical evidence reports teachers’ perception on the ethnomathematics approach. To fill the gap, this present case study showcases that the teachers positively perceived ethnomathematics approach. The case study design was applied in this study with a focus on an exploratory overview of Indonesian’s teachers understanding ethnomathematics and practices. Teachers apply myriad media from Buginese and Makassar traditional meals and games in teaching math through the ethnomathematics approach, and most participants agree to include ethnomathematics in the math curriculum. This study found from the findings that by ethnomathematics students can grab the lesson easily and acknowledge their own culture based on the Indonesian National curriculum. Drawing on these findings, policy recommendations for teachers and school stakeholders, along with conceptual and empirical implications are discussed.

A game proposal for teaching math operations to 6th / 9th grade students

The purpose of this work is to serve as an aid tool for the teacher, for the students and for the development of the classes, however, we hope that the game is developed in an appropriate way so that it does not harm their performance. The objective of this work is to analyze the possibilities of teaching / learning of mathematical operations from the application of the game "the awakening of mathematics" for 6th and 9th grade students. The work methodology was developed for the students in order to solve such difficulties that some students were presenting during the math classes, developed from cardboard paper, A4 paper in 9x9 square format (9 squares in height and width), containing a total of 81 cells on the board, where the mental calculation of the four mathematical operations is proposed. It was realized that the use of the game should not be applied only as a means of interaction between students, therefore, if the teacher proposes the game as a teaching strategy, he should treat it as a vehicle for building knowledge, creating and experimenting.

Using the History of Mathematics as a Motivational Factor in Teaching Math

Several studies have explored the importance and benefits of teaching the history of mathematics as part of regular math classes. Some of these studies addressed the question of using the history of mathematics as a motivational factor. For instance, some found that teaching or using the history of mathematics boosted students‟ interest in the topics, lowered mathematical anxiety, and increased motivation, as well as supporting student learning and increasing the understanding of mathematical concepts. In the present paper, we analyze the positive effects that integrating elements of the history of mathematics into regular math classes could have on student motivation. We argue that students could greatly benefit from the inclusion of topics from the history of mathematics in regular classes.