The article "Using Creative Writing and Literature in Mathematics Class" has me wondering about how we decide what and how to teach as well as how we measure the effectiveness of our teaching. On the one hand, I can envision how story telling in math could end up being useful as a learning tool if done appropriately. On the other hand, I can imagine how it might also turn into a silly, meaningless exercise. Reading the examples did not make me confident that the students were focused on the math as much as just figuring out how to cram a math concept into a familiar story line (I am thinking about the rendition of the Three Billy Goats Gruff in particular)....kind of like fitting a square peg into a round hole.
I think in a case like this it might be good to offer a range of possible expressions of math concepts. For example, some students might find it easier to describe a real life math problem (create an elaborate story problem for example). Others might feel comfortable researching a historical moment in which a key mathematical concept was discovered. My concern is while it sounds great and interesting to have students write stories about math, it can't just be an interesting exercise. The goal still needs to be math learning. The author focused a great deal on examining how she used the writing as an assessment of understanding. I got the impression she was saying HEY LOOK! I can use this great thing to assess my students...almost as if there was no other (maybe easier?) way.
OK. I am feeling like a naysayer now and believe me I love reading and writing. I also in general love the idea of integrating across subjects. However, I came away from reading this article with a very uncomfortable feeling. A feeling like the authors were missing something. Perhaps given time and discussion with others in the cohort I will either be able to better pinpoint my concern or will be convinced otherwise. Either that or I woke up on the wrong side of the bed. Bah humbug.
I vaguely remember discussing this task with you. Is your discomfort related to the fact that the intention of the assignment was not misconstrued and that certain students would have perceived it as "entertainment"? Do you remember our conversation about the role of a teacher--that his/her role is not to be an entertainer? Do you feel like this teacher resorted to an activity that was less about concept and more about entertainment?
ReplyDeleteOr are you more concerned that not all students will gravitate and respond well to this type of learning task due to their learning styles? Are you concerned that there should have been a wider range of projects available to them to describe their understanding?
I wonder how your thinking might be different now, after we were able to view the student projects from the L.A. class the other day. There was an enormous range and some exceptional creativity. I feel enouraged that students are very creative, but that creativity for some cannot stand alone--some students will flourish when there are specific guidelines to lead them to an end product. Imagine if we were trying to write our vinettes without any instruction! Eek!
These are good questions. Mainly I felt like the exercise was forcing students to figure out how to cram some concept into a fairy tale story. Looking at the examples did not make me feel confident that using the story format contributed to deepening their understanding in any way. I fully agree students can be creative -- perhaps a better exercise would have been to allow them to pick their own format for expressing a math concept. Just my opinion!
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