Webinar series recap, part 2 of 3
Our explores how problem-based learning engages all students in grade-level math every day, and how instructors can bring problem-based learning into their classrooms.
We reviewed part 1 of the series in this blog post. Now, in , we dig deeper into this key aspect of problem-based learning: transferring responsibility for learning to the students.
So鈥ow what? 鈥淚f you watched Kristin Gray鈥檚 webinar,鈥� says educator Kathleen Sheehy, 鈥淵ou may be thinking, 鈥業 learned so much about the power of problem-based learning. Where do I get started?鈥欌��
In this webinar, Sheehy joins fellow educator Ben Simon to explore how teachers can truly make that key shift toward student-centered instruction. 鈥淚t is a journey. So we are going to talk about the small shifts that teachers and others can make that add up to something big,鈥� Sheehy says.
The role of the teacher in student-centered learning
Most adults were not taught to do math this way as kids鈥攁nd many teachers were not taught to teach math this way. When teachers have a lot of content to get across in limited time, it can feel risky to shift to a style that requires a bit of letting go.
鈥淪tudent-centered instruction helps us embrace the idea that people can come at math ideas from different directions,鈥� says Sheehy. 鈥�It鈥檚 collaborative and social. It focuses on problem-solving with an emphasis on multiple strategies and flexible thinking.鈥�
Problem-based math learning may not be the sage-on-a-stage model, where the teacher stands up front and acts as the only math expert in the room鈥攂ut it doesn鈥檛 mean the teacher relinquishes control, either. You can have both student-focused instruction and solid classroom management.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not a free-for-all. It鈥檚 very structured,鈥� says Sheehy. 鈥淭he teacher also plays a role in providing instruction and then guiding their students to the key takeaways they want for them.鈥�
Building stakeholder investment
To be most effective, problem-based learning needs to be not only focused on the student but supported by the community as well. This means you aren鈥檛 the only one who needs to adjust to the new approach.
What actions can you take to build stakeholder investment? How can you get the principal, other teachers, parents, and kids (who are also accustomed to another style of learning) involved and excited?
Be able to articulate a really compelling reason why student-centered instruction is right for your students. The following are just a few research-backed examples:
- It helps students develop deeper and longer-lasting mathematical understanding.
- It helps students grow as problem-solvers, engaging them in productive struggle and collaboration and learning core life skills.
- It helps students develop a growth mindset, which reduces math anxiety, boosts math confidence, and helps them relinquish the idea that someone either is or is not a math person.
When the teacher is the supporter of knowledge, not the gatekeeper, students lead the learning process and feel more confidence with and connection to math, says Sheehy.
How and where do you communicate these ideas? Sheehy and Dixon have found that providing a short hands-on math experience with problem-based learning examples can be very effective. This enables stakeholders to experience the difference themselves, especially when conducted in a low-stakes scenario like a parent math night or PD training.
Sheehy also suggests asking them what they think the impact of student-centered learning would have been for them when they were students. 鈥淲e鈥檝e heard people say things like, 鈥業 would have been way less anxious about math if I鈥檇 learned it this way,鈥欌�� she says.
Making a plan to start the shift
鈥淲e鈥檙e not expecting to create a masterpiece overnight. It takes time to develop the teacher and student skills and to establish everything that needs to be in place,鈥� Sheehy says, 鈥淵ou can’t get better at all the things all at once.鈥�
Where to start? 鈥淪ize up the shift,鈥� she says, and make a plan.
鈥淯sing very clear look-fors can enable educators to decide where to focus,鈥� says Sheehy. 鈥溾�榃hat would I look for if I walked into a classroom that is beginning to engage in student-centered instruction?鈥欌��
Here are a few key elements to look for:
- Management of materials, routines, and classroom setup in a way that facilitates collaboration.
- Establishment of a classroom community (using norms charts, etc.) around the core idea that everybody belongs there and is a mathematician.
- A teachable structure that models the thinking process and creates predictability, allowing students to focus.
Sheehy and Dixon have found that a focus on these three areas helps teachers name what they are trying to improve in a systematic way.
鈥淥nce I tackle this first area and feel successful with that, I know what I鈥檓 going to tackle next, and after that,鈥� says Sheehy. 鈥淭hese look-fors can help you make informed decisions that, little step by little step, can help you eventually get to where you want to be.鈥�
How Amplify Math supports problem-based learning
Amplify Math is designed to support problem-based learning, so you鈥檙e making that shift every time you teach. The program specifically supports teachers in the planning and delivery of problem-based lessons, and enables them to monitor student progress and differentiate instruction based on real-time data.
Lessons start with warm-ups that tap into prior knowledge, then move into problems that require collaboration to solve. Teachers monitor, engage, and ultimately synthesize student work into the main idea. There are also ample opportunities for practice and reflection.听
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