MathsTalk by AMSI Schools

Host, Leanne McMahon catches up with highly experienced mathematics educator and founder of  Maths Teacher Circles in Australia, Michaela Epstein to discuss how Problem Solving in classrooms of all year levels can be effective and collaborative. We discuss how teachers can go about incorporating problem solving into their classroom practice and how to structure these activities. We also look at the false dichotomy between problem solving and explicit instruction and why each of these has its place in the contemporary Maths classroom.

Resources:

Michaela's website: https://www.michaelaepstein.com.au/ 

Other links discussed by Michaela:

• Maths Teacher Circles website: https://mathsteachercircles.org/amsi 

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/MathsCirclesOz

Some good sources of Problems:

• NZ Maths https://nzmaths.co.nz/problem-solving (Some great articles to read here too)

Contact us on [email protected] or Twittter @AMSIschools or Facebook MathsTalk by AMSI Schools

The Grattan Institute recently released a report looking at the benefits of a coordinated, whole-school approach to planning, which carefully sequences learning of key knowledge and skills across subjects and year levels. In this episode, Leanne McMahon (AMSI) and Nadia Abdelal from EM Maths discuss the significance of this report and how the recommendations would play out in schools. Naturally we focus on Mathematics, but this is a discussion that belongs across all learning areas.

The report can be found here: https://grattan.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Ending-the-lesson-lottery-Grattan-Report.pdf

Nadia can be contacted here: https://www.emmaths.com.au/ 

Leanne can be contacted here: [email protected]

Find resources and ICE-EM Books at https://calculate.org.au/ 

Teachers to Leaders https://www.teacherstoleaders.com.au/ 

After feedback from our audience, we have cleaned up the audio for this episode to make it infinitely more listenable!

Host Leanne McMahon sits down to talk with Kerryn Sandford, a mathematics educator and principal of a secondary school in Melbourne, about her thoughts on how we can ensure our students achieve success in mathematics.

This episode sponsored by AMSI's own ICE-EM textbook range: https://schools.amsi.org.au/ice-em-mathematics-textbooks/ 

We cover all manner of topics that she mentions in her article in the latest edition of MAV's "Common Denominator" which can be accessed here:

https://www.mav.vic.edu.au/Services-and-News/Common-Denominator-Magazine

Other topics covered are:

Out of Field Maths teachers: https://tinyurl.com/AMSIOoF Also keep an eye out for the Report from the National Summit on Teaching Out-of-field: Synthesis and Recommendations for Policy, Practice and Research. Due end of June 2022.

Year 12 mathematics participation report: https://tinyurl.com/AMSIMathsChoices 

Explicit Instruction: https://tinyurl.com/ExplicitInstructionVicEd

Twitter: @AMSIschools

Contact us: [email protected]

Host Leanne McMahon talks to Teacher education expert and former AMSI Outreach Officer, Helen Booth about the 'elephant in the room' for many primary teachers, Maths Anxiety. We look at its origins, how it may manifest itself and the effect it can have on our students. Secondary school maths teachers will also be interested in this topic, as they may have remnants of MA themselves, or could be asked to work with out of field colleagues who carry the burden.

Resources:

ICE-EM Textbooks: https://schools.amsi.org.au/ice-em-mathematics-textbooks/

Maths Anxiety paper used for stimulation:

Gerardo Ramirez, Stacy T. Shaw & Erin A. Maloney (2018) Math Anxiety: Past Research, Promising Interventions, and a New Interpretation Framework, Educational Psychologist,

53:3, 145-164, DOI: 10.1080/00461520.2018.1447384

AMSI Research into MA: https://schools.amsi.org.au/2019/01/14/choosemaths-days-2018-report-3-2/

Maths Anxiety and Gender: https://schools.amsi.org.au/2019/06/21/choosemaths-gender-report-2019/

Calculate: https://calculate.org.au/

Contact us at: [email protected] 

In our special episode aimed at Senior Mathematics students and their teachers, host, Leanne McMahon talks to the highly respected mathematics educator Vicky Kennard about how these students can use the last few weeks before the exams to maximise their chances of success. We look at where you should be at this stage and very importantly what to do if you're not there yet.

ICE-EM Textbooks: https://schools.amsi.org.au/ice-em-mathematics-textbooks/

Neuroscience and education: https://www.youcubed.org/neuroscience-education-article/

Interleaving: https://www.edutopia.org/article/how-use-interleaving-foster-deeper-learning

Pomodoro Method: https://todoist.com/productivity-methods/pomodoro-technique

This is the first in a two part series, directed at all who teach and learn Mathematics. Host, Helen Booth talks with respected educator Vicky Kennard about the science of learning maths and how this can be put into practice by both teachers and students. They delve into study methods, learning theories, growth mindset and a plethora of other aspects of Maths learning.  This will be a great episode to listen to before next week's podcast that will be directed at senior students and how they can best use the last couple of months before exams.

Resources:

ICE-EM Textbooks: https://schools.amsi.org.au/ice-em-mathematics-textbooks/

Neuroscience and education: https://www.youcubed.org/neuroscience-education-article/

Interleaving: https://www.edutopia.org/article/how-use-interleaving-foster-deeper-learning

Pomodoro Method: https://todoist.com/productivity-methods/pomodoro-technique

Host, Leanne McMahon welcomes Marcus Garrett, former MathsTalk host and current Learning Solutions Designer at RMIT Online to discuss the idea that digital mindsets which are underpinned by mathematics, are the key to unlocking opportunities for young people in the jobs market, opportunities in life and also opportunities for the Australian economy.

Deloitte Access Economics and RMIT Online concluded in a report that one of the biggest emerging skill needs for the Australian economy remains digital skills, meaning the data and data interpretation skills that give people the confidence and the capacity to use digital technologies to make sound data-driven decisions when faced with complex problems. We look at how teachers can facilitate the development of these skills throughout school and how the RMIT Online team enable teachers and other professionals to build their data interpretation skills and maybe even increase their income in the process.

Resources:

ICE-EM textbooks: https://schools.amsi.org.au/ice-em-mathematics-textbooks/

RMIT Online: https://online.rmit.edu.au/

Ready, set, upskill: Effective training for the jobs of tomorrow: https://online.rmit.edu.au/insights/2021 

Contact us: https://calculate.org.au/contact-schools/ 

Popular demand sees us re-releasing part 2 of our conceptual understanding podcast, one of the most downloaded of all of our episodes. In it, Nadia and Leanne continue their discussion about teaching mathematics for conceptual understanding. Today they delve into how Patterns and Algebra can be taught conceptually and then they get practical; discussing the thought process that goes into planning units.

For suggestions comments and ideas, please contact us at @AMSISchools on Twitter or [email protected]

Resources from the podcast:

Nadia's website (EM Maths): https://www.emmaths.com.au/ 

www.calculate.org.au

Patterns Lesson: https://calculate.org.au/year7/ 

Supporting Australian Mathematics Project: http://www.amsi.org.au/ESA_middle_years/Year7/Year7_md/Year7main.html 

Geometry: https://calculate.org.au/measurement-and-geometry/

Algebra tiles: https://calculate.org.au/2019/03/27/algebratiles/

By popular demand, we bring you Maths consultant Nadia Abdelal, talking in 2021 about the importance of teaching for conceptual understanding, and why it needs to be extended into secondary classes. This is a must-listen for primary and secondary teachers alike and will hopefully stimulate some real discussion in staffrooms across Australia and the world. It was the first in a 2-part series on conceptual understanding in Mathematics and you can continue our discussion with a dive into teaching algebra for conceptual understanding by going to the episode from March 2021, clicking here https://open.spotify.com/episode/42tZlWUtCozw6wTyHbDNza?si=7c9da64eb9a44914 or waiting until next week, when we will rerelease it.

Contact us at www.calculate.org.au 

Nadia’s website: https://emmaths.com.au

An NCTM article about teaching Maths for conceptual understanding: https://www.nctm.org/Publications/Mathematics-Teaching-in-Middle-School/2018/Vol24/Issue1/Promoting-a-Conceptual-Understanding-of-Mathematics/

Marcus discusses the importance of Context in Mathematics: https://calculate.org.au/2016/02/19/2498/

Jo Boaler highlights that learning number facts is not all about procedure, and in fact a conceptual approach is more effective: https://www.youcubed.org/evidence/fluency-without-fear/

Host Leanne McMahon sits down to talk with Kerryn Sandford, a mathematics educator and principal of a secondary school in Melbourne, about her thoughts on how we can ensure our students achieve success in mathematics.

This episode sponsored by AMSI's own ICE-EM textbook range: https://schools.amsi.org.au/ice-em-mathematics-textbooks/ 

We cover all manner of topics that she mentions in her article in the latest edition of MAV's "Common Denominator" which can be accessed here:

https://www.mav.vic.edu.au/Services-and-News/Common-Denominator-Magazine

Other topics covered are:

Out of Field Maths teachers: https://tinyurl.com/AMSIOoF Also keep an eye out for the Report from the National Summit on Teaching Out-of-field: Synthesis and Recommendations for Policy, Practice and Research. Due end of June 2022.

Year 12 mathematics participation report: https://tinyurl.com/AMSIMathsChoices 

Explicit Instruction: https://tinyurl.com/ExplicitInstructionVicEd

Twitter: @AMSIschools

Contact us: https://calculate.org.au/mathstalk-podcast/