I said in my e-mail that I am 100% for the correct use of technology in the
classroom. I would PREFER to have a graphing calculator required for the
class.
One remark was...
>I am sorry that your students don't have a teacher who has time to enrich the
>course and the text. Maybe YOU should explain that there are inexpensive
>calculators that will do fractions. Maybe your student is too busy to go
>technology shopping..
Whoa...my peers in grad school and at the high schools and community
colleges I have taught at have always looked up to my use of technology,
projects ect. to enrich my classes and textbooks. They will often ask me
for ideas. I think this is an unfair comment, you do not know anything
about what I DO in the classroom.
And, I explained at the beginning of the semester that here are $10
calculators that will "do" fractions.
My frustrations as a teacher are seeing the students being totally
dependent on that calculator, to where they can not think. If this is a
self taught dependence, or one that came from a past teacher, I do not
know, and is really a moot point. The fact is, the student is dependent on
the calculator.
My reason for not allowing the graphing calculator in this particular
class, is (1) The book (2) Some of these calculators have an equation
solver in them, which I think gives some students an unfair advantage over
others that do not have them. Sure, they still have to show their work.
But the ability to check the answer with the calculator that does not make
mistakes is there. For me, it is fair for all to have them or all to not
have them. Those are my beliefs, yours may be different. Please do not
judge my teaching from this belief.
>In my humble opinion, when you become a graduate teaching assistant, you have
>the same responsibility to your students as do the full time staff. I know
>your life seems extrodinarily dbusy and that teaching is a secondary part of
>your academic experience, but to that student you ( and all grad
>assistants--- this is not to you personnally ) are the instructor for which
>he looks for guidance.
And I know I have the responsibility to my students...at times so much so
that it has hurt my own grades in grad school. I am there for office
hours, appointments outside of class before class, after class, by e-mail,
by voice mail. SEEMS busy? Please go back and remember what grad school
was like.
(If I seem a little irritated, you are right...it is VERY frustrating for
me to NOT have all the time I need to plan my classes and teach the way
that I think I ought to be teaching. I LOVE to teach math. But, the fact
is, I do not have all the time I wish I had. Unless of course, I do not
choose to sleep at night.)
>You say you struggle with allowing the technology in College Algebra.
No, this is NOT what I said. I said that I struggle with allowing
technology in THIS college algebra class, with THIS book. I have taught
college algebra, AP Calculus, Trig ect...using a graphing calc..that is the
way I prefer. I guess you would have to see this bood to belive it.
Ok, there...I said my peace :) You are right Joni...you started some
controversy :)
Off to dinner.... and thanks for all your input on this...I am open to all
suggestions.
Jodi Cotten
Grad Student
Northern Arizona University
Jodi
Galations 5:22
****************************************************************************
* To post to the list: email mathedcc@archives.math.utk.edu *
* To unsubscribe, send mail to: majordomo@archives.math.utk.edu *
* In the mail message, enter ONLY the words: unsubscribe mathedcc *
* Words in the Subject: line are NOT processed! *
* Archives at http://archives.math.utk.edu/hypermail/mathedcc/ *
****************************************************************************