Teaching Common Core Using “Principles to Action…”
With the transition to the Common Core State Standards we are seeing a fundamental cultural shift on how students learn and practice mathematics. With Common Core it is no longer acceptable to have students memorize definitions and practice procedures without students understanding the underlying concepts behind those procedures. Students must now construct meaning by performing cognitively demanding tasks that review deeper mathematical concepts. My fundamental goal as a math teacher is to learn how to create a classroom where students “do mathematics” by engaging in rigorous tasks, mathematical discourse and connection and meaning making. In order to accomplish this I need to increase my own mathematical knowledge and my pedagogical content knowledge. This is the very knowledge I am seeking by attending the NCTM 2015 Regional Conference. With this new knowledge combined with the training I am receiving at school, I can more effectively teach math concepts to the students I serve.