Friday Institute News

An Integrated Approach to Teaching

Successful teaching in a technology-rich classroom is so much more than mastering a specific tool. Faculty at North Carolina State University are taking this challenge to the next level by helping teacher educators use their instruction model that goes beyond simply understanding particular educational tool or software. 

Drs. Karen Hollebrands and Hollylynne Lee, associate professors of mathematics education, are leading this project that addresses mathematics content, pedagogy and technological skills in an integrated manner, titled, "Preparing to Teach Mathematics with Technology" (PTMT). PTMT hosted a summer institute last week at the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation for mathematics education faculty representing different universities from across the nation.  

“The institute provided a unique opportunity to bring together mathematics teacher educators who have expertise in using different technology tools and interest in considering how such tools can transform instructional experiences for prospective and practicing teachers and middle and high school students,” said Hollebrands.  

The institute participants learned about the teacher education materials PTMT developed and were instructed on how to implement what they learned at their home institutions.  The materials consist of two textbooks, data analysis and probability and the second, geometry, and prepare future and current mathematics teachers to use technology effectively in their classroom instruction. 

For example, teacher educators considered how to design a dynamic geometry sketch to assist middle school students in discovering the triangle inequality theorem. After creating a sketch, they viewed a video of two students using these materials in an eighth grade classroom. The institute participants then discussed how the activity supported middle school students’ mathematical exploration. “These opportunities to examine video of students’ working with technology to learn mathematics provides rich context to engage in important pedagogical discussions,” said Lee.

PTMT is in its second phase of a course, curriculum and lab improvement project funded by the National Science Foundation. Click here for more information. 

The book, Preparing to Teach Mathematics with Technology: An Integrated Approach to Data Analysis and Probability, is published by Kendall Hunt Publishing. The book is being used within a course in the College of Education that serves about 70 future mathematics teachers each year and at is currently at almost 20 other institutions.