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How to best teach mathematics?
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This event has been postponed due to the current lockdown. We will advise of a new date as soon as we can. We apologise for any inconvenience.


How to best teach mathematics? A perspective from a road less travelled

A doctorate presentation by Dr Fabio D'Agostin.

The mathematical ability of Australian students has steadily declined during the last 20 years. A fifteen year-old today knows their maths about as well as a fourteen year-old two decades ago. One of the many questions that arise from this concerning situation is, how effective is our mathematics teaching? Two major pedagogical approaches dominate mathematics classrooms - traditional and progressive. Each pedagogy has its own set of proponents and critics. Comparisons between each teaching style tend to focus on cognitive outcomes. My research examined the issue from the perspective of student emotional responses. The investigation is based upon the contention that students who feel positive about mathematics are more likely to perform well in the subject. So how is student interest/enjoyment/boredom/dislike associated with mathematical classroom activity? I looked at both traditional and progressive teaching approaches within 10 mathematics lessons involving a single Year 10 class. Student emotional responses were identified and correlated with particular aspects of classroom activities. The outcomes provide a unique perspective from which the question of how best to teach mathematics may be considered.



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