This month, we focus on the 4 C's: Creativity, Collaboration, Communication, and Critical Thinking. Today's entry comes from Abby Brown, math teacher at Torrey Pines High School:
For nearly twenty years I have had my students give regular presentations in class – in math class. This has taken different forms with different classes over the years, but the objectives have been the same: students will become more confident public speakers and will learn to explain their work with clarity and accuracy.
In the more formal presentations that my students do, they are assigned a math problem from the book. However, rather than simply solving it as in homework, the presenters need to show their work, review key concepts, and do something more such as a visualization, animation, data analysis, or three-dimensional model. That is where they are often most creative. The structure for their work is centered on multiple representations. Students share their methods symbolically, graphically, numerically, and verbally. Tying together the different representations deepens their understanding of the concepts and having to present to their peers that takes it even further.
An added twist to these presentations is that the students get feedback beyond the grade from the teacher. We video record each presentation using an old cell phone. The students later watch themselves present and become their own audience. Also, while a group presents, several other students in the class complete critique forms for the talk. They evaluate the presenters on both content and style looking to see that the presentation is both clear and accurate. The presenters review these critique forms while watching their presentation and then answer reflection questions about strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement. This helps prepare them for their next presentation and develops their public speaking skills.
Each year when former students visit or send emails to say hello, they ask whether I still have my students do presentations and video. They comment on how much they appreciated that practice. For most students, the ability to speak confidently, clearly, and accurately in front of a group will serve them more in their future work and careers than whether they can solve specific math problems.
