Blog #70 – BENEFITS OF HAVING TEACHERS AND STUDENTS AT A WORKSHOP
For more than 15 years, I have done mathematics workshops in which I have required that teachers and students attend. When expressing why I want both teachers and students present, I explain the benefits that are inherent in having them in the same workshop together. I have done this for workshops featuring elementary, middle and high school participants.
When students are present, not only am I focused on teaching concepts from Number Sense, Calculator or Mathematics, but I am also simultaneously modeling for the teachers how I teach those concepts. By modeling, teachers can see how I motivate the students. They can also observe how concepts are developed from basic to more complex. They can see how everything is explained in a step-by-step format.
When I attended workshops, teachers were constantly complaining that the presenters “told” them what to do, with no evidence to show that what they were being told actually worked. The phrase constantly quoted was “I know that they can talk the talk, but can they walk the walk.” These types of experiences were what inspired me to have students present at the workshop.
Another benefit of having both present at the workshops is that there is so much content presented during that time, that it is impossible for teachers to learn everything that I am teaching. Having students present increases the number of individuals that are listening and observing what is being presented. Extra eyes and ears are very beneficial to everyone. When students are present teachers can get a preview of the types of questions that they ask. This is important because the teachers will be better prepared when they work with the students. During my presentations, I ask questions where common errors tend to occur. Including common errors in the presentation is beneficial for both students and teachers. When presenting these types of problems, I usually ask for a show of hands when getting an erroneous solution. Incredibly, teachers watch as the 80%- 90% of the students incorrectly believing that the erroneous solution is true.
During these workshops that include teachers and students as participants, they believe that the workshop was specifically done for them. After the workshop, teachers tell me that they learned more about teaching during the workshop that they can recall learning when in college. The students are grateful for assisting them to improve their future performances. These types of workshops highlight why modeling is the best vehicle to teach mathematics.