Kara Villalobos

How can we get our students to think for themselves? Math traditionally is
taught very procedurally. Due to this we have become stuck in a rut: however
change is on the horizon. By changing questions asked in class we can encourage
students to think. With the use of essential questions, our math classrooms will
become a symphony of mathematical discourse. In the article Lets Talk Promoting
Mathematical Discourse in the Classroom, Catherine C. Stien explains how this can
be accomplished in the classroom.
The use of discourse in the mathematics classroom, however, can be difficult
to implement and manage. In the article Lets Talk Promoting Mathematical
Discourse in the Classroom, Catherine C. Stien. It is essential to start by having a
classroom environment that is conducive to learning and where students feel it is ok
to express their mathematical thinking. This can be accomplished if you setup the
atmosphere from the beginning of the year.
We must demonstrate to students that we want them to understand, not just
be able to produce the correct answer. We need to communicate to them what we
are looking for in order to promote conceptual understanding. Supportive
motivational discourse occurs when teachers focus on learning through mistakes,
collaboration, persistence and positive affect. In the article Lets Talk Promoting
Mathematical Discourse in the Classroom, Catherine C. Stien. Through
mathematical discourse we learn math. By instilling persistence, collaboration and
learning from their mistakes will help build better math students will become
stronger overall students.
Kara Villalobos
If we change our classroom environment and our method of questioning we
change how math is taught. We need to think about what we want our students to
conceptually understand and base our questioning on that prepare students to
engage in mathematical discourse.