Thoughts on Mathematics

Today in class we were told that research shows that virtual manipulatives are just as effective as the standard, “old fashion” manipulatives for students because of all of their exposure to technology. However, I wonder if the research found differences in the ages of students using the virtual manipulatives. I could see older students doing just fine with the virtual tools but that maybe younger students would need some hands on exposure first. In the kindergarten class I am in we have “math tubs”. Inside the tubs are various manipulatives for the students to use and explore. One tub has various geometric shapes that they use build and sort and re helpful for them gaining some knowledge about shapes. I have found a virtual tool that that you could do some similar things. However, would this be just as effective for the students? I am not sure. I am not totally convinced. This might just be because I am not completely from the virtual generation and my exposure to math has always been hands on. Since I am not sure if one over rules the other, I think exposure to both would be best. Another thought I have is what about the students that haven’t had as much exposure to video game and a computer? If the research shows that students can use the virtual manipulatives because of their exposure, than I take that to mean the students that haven’t had those experiences might not benefit. There probably are not too many students out there that fall into that category but we also can’t assume that everyone does. Also considering learning styles, some might just operate better when they have tangible manipulatives in front of them.

Another thought I ate up after it came up today during the discussion was the teachers who try to rush and get through the all of the curriculum. The comment that first came up was what if teachers only taught 50% of the curriculum and made sure to teach it really well. If this question had come up during my time in the middle school math dyad I would have asked the teacher I was with. From my observations I never got the impression that the teachers were just trying to push through the curriculum. Instead it seemed pretty flexible with some teachers staying on units a little longer because the students were not ready to move on.  I wonder if you can help elevate the feeling of needing to get it all done by not teaching from a text book. I know in all of my classes that I have used a textbook we never got through the whole thing but did move at a pretty rapid pace. Maybe having a large, thick text puts pressure on teachers to get through the curriculum.