5422 Views (as of 05/2023)
  1. Erin Turner
  2. Professor
  3. Presenter’s NSFRESOURCECENTERS
  4. University of Arizona
  1. Julia Aguirre
  2. Associate Professor
  3. Presenter’s NSFRESOURCECENTERS
  4. University of Washington Tacoma
  1. Mary Foote
  2. Presenter’s NSFRESOURCECENTERS
  3. Queens College CUNY
  1. Amy Roth McDuffie
  2. Professor, Mathematics Education
  3. Presenter’s NSFRESOURCECENTERS
  4. Washington State University

M2C3: Mathematical Modeling with Cultural and Community Contexts

NSF Awards: 1561274

2019 (see original presentation & discussion)

Grades K-6

Mathematical modeling is a high-leverage topic, critical in STEM education and civic engagement. Modeling tasks invite students to investigate real-world contexts through a cyclical process of: (a) analyzing situations; (b) constructing models that represent the situation, based on information and assumptions; (c) using models to perform operations and reason about results; (d) validating or revising models; and (e) reporting conclusions. While considered a secondary content area, research has shown elementary students capable of engaging in mathematical modeling. In our project, we collaborated with elementary teachers from two different regions in the US to develop modeling lessons that build on students’ mathematical thinking (Carpenter et al., 1998) andtheir community-based knowledge and experiences (Civil, 2007). Through professional development and research, we have designed tools and activities that support teachers to develop and adapt modeling tasks that explicitly draw on children’s experiences. This video highlights several mathematical modeling tasks, including the Swap Meet task (students design a vendor booth for a community swap meet) and the Upcycling Jump Ropes task (students design a set of jump ropes, made by upcycling plastic bags, for physical education classes at the school). The video highlights both student and teacher perspectives on their experiences with mathematical modeling. Specifically, teachers describe deepened understanding and increased engagement, and the ways that children leverage mathematical knowledge, and every day experiences and practices to inform their engagement in each phase of the mathematical modeling process.

 

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Discussion from the 2019 STEM for All Video Showcase (18 posts)
  • Icon for: Jill Castek

    Jill Castek

    Researcher
    May 13, 2019 | 12:27 a.m.

    Hi Erin,

    It's great to see the phenomenal work you're doing in Mathematical Modeling with teachers around the country. Your approach is so impactful.  How do you encourage teachers and participants to share what they know with others within your project and beyond?  I'm so glad to have learned more about your project.  I'm greatly inspired by it! 

  • Icon for: Susan Jo Russell

    Susan Jo Russell

    Facilitator
    Principal scientist
    May 13, 2019 | 11:40 a.m.

    Hi,

    This is very exciting work, bringing together important mathematics and practices with intentional uses of culture and context.  In our work with elementary teachers, we find that most teachers don't know what "mathematical modeling" means. What are you learning about what teachers need to learn about what modeling is, and what are you learning from your collaborating teachers about key aspects of how they support students during these investigations?

  • Icon for: Amy Roth McDuffie

    Amy Roth McDuffie

    Co-Presenter
    Professor, Mathematics Education
    May 14, 2019 | 09:25 a.m.

    We continue to work on analysis for this important question, and of course, needs vary across teachers, but a few key ideas of needs for learning include;

    • understanding how math modeling is a form of problem solving, but it also includes processes that we do not necessarily engage in when focusing on problem solving more generally. 
    • understanding the differences (and commonalities, in some instances) between working with manipulatives as thinking tools (to model thinking) and creating a model to solve a problem from a real-world context. 
    • ways to facilitate discussions in “summarize” phase of a lesson, and to support students in working toward generalizing a model/ creating a reusable version of their solution. 

    In terms of what we are learning from collaborating teachers, again, the list is long! One key idea is ways to listen to, focus on, and leverage ideas from students. We have long known that student ideas are important, but our teachers show us a wide-range of ways we can draw on and take up these ideas to support learning  

    What have you found in your work?

  • Icon for: Julie Amador

    Julie Amador

    Higher Ed Faculty
    May 13, 2019 | 03:25 p.m.

    Great video! In my context, I am thinking about how to support prospective elementary teachers with modeling that connects to cultural and community contexts. Thank you for suggesting the visit to your website! The resources provided there will be quite helpful for teaching my methods course. Thanks!!
    Julie

     
    1
    Discussion is closed. Upvoting is no longer available

    Nancy Holmes
  • Icon for: Erin Turner

    Erin Turner

    Lead Presenter
    Professor
    May 14, 2019 | 02:57 a.m.

    Excellent! We will be adding additional resources to the website over the next 3-6 months, including video clips from lesson enactments, and student work samples for each of the tasks. Definitely let us know what you find useful! 

  • Icon for: Amy Hackenberg

    Amy Hackenberg

    Higher Ed Faculty
    May 13, 2019 | 04:14 p.m.

    Thanks for this! I enjoyed the video and learning about your project. I am curious about Susan Jo's questions above, so I'll wait to read that response.

    Amy

  • Icon for: Kathryn Kozak

    Kathryn Kozak

    Higher Ed Faculty
    May 13, 2019 | 11:51 p.m.

    This is interesting. What do you see as the effect of teaching mathematical modeling to students to how they will learn in the future? Do you think that higher level math teachers, such as higher education, will need to add mathematical modeling to their classes? 

  • Icon for: Erin Turner

    Erin Turner

    Lead Presenter
    Professor
    May 14, 2019 | 03:00 a.m.

    We hope so! In our partner districts, there was already work in math modeling at the secondary level, but modeling was not at all addressed in grades K-8.  But over the three years of our project, we have been able to see some students move from initial explorations of modeling in 3rd grade to continued engagement in 4th and 5th grade, and their growth in confidence is remarkable. Students reference tasks that they worked on in prior grades, and take on modeling practices with increasing skill. 

  • Icon for: Peter Tierney-Fife

    Peter Tierney-Fife

    Curriculum/Instructional Design Associate
    May 14, 2019 | 07:31 p.m.

    I am excited to learn this, and I appreciate the details you provide in the video and on your Web site about how you are incorporating math modeling in elementary grades. This is so important. Can you share any insights or learning related to the process you went through designing and studying your professional development model to do this work, especially related to your focus on students' community-based knowledge and experiences?

  • Icon for: Beth Sappe

    Beth Sappe

    Facilitator
    Director - STEM Mathematics
    May 14, 2019 | 10:24 p.m.

    Thanks for sharing the detailed video. I see many teachers skipping the "modeling" tasks in the curriculum because it "messy" as one of your teachers stated in the vidoe but I believe this is where the real learning takes place. How are teachers experiencing the lessons you developed in sequence with the curriclum they are already using. Did you do an overlay to help them identify when to do the lessons or are they identifying when they think is best?

    Thanks, Beth

  • Icon for: Denise Schultz

    Denise Schultz

    Facilitator
    Instructional Math Coach
    May 14, 2019 | 11:54 p.m.

    Hi Erin!  Thank you for sharing your video with us!  How did the idea of upcycling plastic bags into jump ropes come to be?  Did your project suggest this activity or did the idea come from a desire to reduce plastic bag waste in a community you were working with?  I guess I'm just wondering if the task was brought to the teachers or if the teachers went out into the community in search of a problem to solve.  I did hear in the video that teachers visited community locations to design modeling activities that connect to their own setting.  If so, does your project intend to collect and share the modelling activities that teachers have already designed based on their own social or community needs?  I think it could spark ideas for other teachers to try to mimic or create new ideas similar to the ones you shared with us.  

  • Icon for: Erin Turner

    Erin Turner

    Lead Presenter
    Professor
    May 18, 2019 | 09:15 p.m.

    Great question. In many of our partner schools, teachers and students had been working on various environmentally oriented projects. One school had several classrooms with "upcycling" businesses, and others had active school-wide recycling initiatives. Several teachers were very concerned about plastic in particular. Additionally, a scholastic news report about plastic that ends up in water sources sparked deep conversations in a number of classrooms. Finally, at one partner school students were actively involved in jump rope activities (they begin every day with jumping in the school court yard) and other schools were interested in introducing jump ropes in their communities.  in the case of the jump rope task, our research team actually designed the task, but based on all we had learned from students and teachers. We aimed to connect to these interests and sensibilities in the task design. 

  • Icon for: Sharon Nelson-Barber

    Sharon Nelson-Barber

    Researcher
    May 16, 2019 | 08:09 p.m.

    Hi Erin and Julia. Love the project. This process directly intersects with the work we're doing around integrating local ecological knowledge and experience in science learning.

  • Icon for: Erin Turner

    Erin Turner

    Lead Presenter
    Professor
    May 18, 2019 | 09:09 p.m.

    So great to hear from you Sharon!  I look forward to watching your video as well, and to thinking about connections and synergies. Thanks for the comment. 

  • Icon for: Cynthia Carson

    Cynthia Carson

    Researcher
    May 16, 2019 | 10:44 p.m.

     Great project and video!  I am looking forward to using the resources on your website with pre-service teachers this Fall.

  • Icon for: Amy Roth McDuffie

    Amy Roth McDuffie

    Co-Presenter
    Professor, Mathematics Education
    May 17, 2019 | 07:00 a.m.

    Thanks Cyndi! Pleas let us know what you try and how they work for you. 

  • Icon for: Edith Graf

    Edith Graf

    Researcher
    May 17, 2019 | 09:30 p.m.

    Thanks for sharing this video! I am especially interested in how student interests can contribute to the design of mathematical modeling activities. How did you identify which real-world situations would be especially engaging to students?

  • Icon for: Erin Turner

    Erin Turner

    Lead Presenter
    Professor
    May 18, 2019 | 09:09 p.m.

    The teacher we worked with tended to begin with situations that came up in their schools - situations that involved their students, and that generated  authentic questions that needed answers.  Questions related to school/community events, camping trips, gardening and school markets, and class celebrations seemed particularly fruitful.

     Thanks for the great question!  

     
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    Discussion is closed. Upvoting is no longer available

    Edith Graf
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