ATeachersStory

Posted on May 31, 2005 @ 16:15 by CatherineJohnson

Carolyn (J) has just alerted me to the fact that there are comments under some of our posts . . . so apparently my Next Action vis a vis KTM is: ask Carolyn how to keep track of comments.

('Next Action' is Getting-Things-Done-speak. Carolyn and I are both fans of David Allen's Getting Things Done, and in fact last week Carolyn tipped me off to a whole Getting-Things-Done blog that I am hoping will change my life.)






Anyway, this is a comment from a teacher who has a fascinating situation with Saxon Math.

(I've inserted extra paragraph breaks to make this easier to read):

I teach in a private Christian School. My 5th graders continue to score above all other grades on SAT's.

I am now the only teacher who teaches Saxon, although when I came 11 years ago, all grades used Saxon.

It was felt that there were gaps in the Saxon program for lower grades, so they changed to another program for K-3. That program didn't work, so they are now trying another curriculum. They also felt there were gaps in Saxon for high school, so that has changed. Then they changed 7-8 grades to Mc Dougal-Littell's Passport to Algebra and Geometry, leaving only 4,5,6 using Saxon. Then, they added Passport to Mathematics in 6th. Now, this year they have changing 4th grade to the K-3 curriculum. After three years of complaints from parents and after losing many families, they realized they were going to have to do something about the problems between 5th and 6th grades.

But because of my success in Saxon, they are allowing me to remain with the curriculum.

I know this is a long story, but I find this incredible: one grade in the school continues to be at the top on SAT's, year after year, no matter the class's Math abilities and strengths -- it's my 5th grade class and I use Saxon.

Now, I do use Saxon as it is designed to be used (students make corrections and corrections until they get it right) and that's very important. And I require all the proof, rather than merely answers. Students who have hated math for years learn to love math. Even if they don't understand the total concept, an algorithm allows them to get the right answer and they feel successful for the first time. Their self esteem jumps because they are successful.

The bottom line is: Saxon, when used properly and as designed, works.

Then, the students go into Passport and good students make F's. I'm trying to determine if Passport is considered to be "constructivist" but can find no informatiion on that. I've read the reports from Mathematically Correct's seventh grade review. Passport to Algebra/Geometry is given an A, Passport to Mathematics is given a C. That's all I have found. I see no reference to its being constructivist.

All I know is this: students fall apart, parents ask me to help tutor them, yet it does little good.

Our new secondary principal describes the two programs (Saxon and Passport) as being very different, so I'm guessing that our students are having to go from a very traditional, incremental approach that is successful to a very non-traditional approach. I'm very glad that I found your blog site. I'm going to refer parents to you. Perhaps, they can get insights that I can't yet offer them because I can only teach the "old fashioned, traditional (and successful) way". Thanks for listening and God bless.

I'm pulling these lines out for emphasis:

Students who have hated math for years learn to love math. Even if they don't understand the total concept, an algorithm allows them to get the right answer and they feel successful for the first time. Their self esteem jumps because they are successful.

This is absolutely my own experience.

When I started teaching Christopher math, in the wake of his two failed Unit exams, I was hearing 'math is for geeks,' 'math is for nerds,' 'I hate math,' 'math stinks,' and 'I'm not from Singapore.'

A few weeks into the program all that went away. He was getting As on his tests, he understood the lessons, and suddenly math wasn't for geeks after all.

Self-esteem comes from being able to do something. If a child can do math, he feels good about math. It's that simple.

The other day Christopher actually said to me, spontaneously, in the midst of doing his Saxon homework when he could have been outside shooting baskets or upstairs playing WWE Here Comes the Pain on his PlayStation, "I like math, I just don't like doing math problems."

I had to stop what I was doing and check this out.

"You like math?"

"I like the idea of math."

He's not ready to Commit, but he sounded happy.


ILikeMathPart2
CompareAndContrast
FromAReader
PracticePracticePractice
BarModelingVsGraphing (interesting comments from a KTM reader)

BeingYourChildsFrontalLobes
GreatMomentsInWorldHistory
ProgressReport
BonusPreTeenPost
SummerSupplementTimePart2
SundaySchool
ILikeMath
TheGoodNewsFromHere
GoodNewsBadNews
ImGoingToPlayland
ImportantQuestionFromJoanneCobaskoOfSocmm
ImportantQuestionPart2
OutsmartingTheTests
ConversationsWithKids

Back to main page.

---

---

Comments

Users must register to comment.

Look here for syntax help.

WebLogForm
Title:
TopicType:	WebLog
SubjectArea:	IrvingtonMath, IrvingtonSchools, ParentsTeachingKids, SaxonMath, TipsAndTricks
LogDate:	200505311615