Frequently Asked Questions:
- I'm NEVER going to use this. Why do I have to learn it?
- Why do you assign homework?
- You say you grade homework for completion, and I did it all, but didn't get a perfect score. WHY NOT?
- I'm a genius. Why do I have to show my work?
- Why do you insist on students using pencils?
- Why don't we ever have a free day?
- Why don't you assign extra credit work?
- What's with the wierd clothes?
I'm NEVER going to use this. Why do I have to learn it?
Today's education system is frontloaded. That means we give lots of
information in a relatively short period of time, and well before any student
will ever use it "in the wild." The truth of the matter is that you may not
use the pure, undistilled content taught in math courses in your life. You
will, however, use the concepts. Mathematical concepts are essential to
surviving in the real world.
How long until I have to be at work? How much money do I have left until
payday? How will I rearrange my room so all this furniture fits? How much
wrapping paper will I need to wrap this gift? At what point does a pay raise
result in my paying more in taxes and my take-home pay actually
decreasing? How small can I make the point gap in my distributor?
All of these questions are algebraic and geometric in nature. If you have a
strong foundation of basic concepts (in math, social studies, English,
science, and art), you will have a strong foundation for reasoning in the future.
Why do you assign homework?
Homework is the key to success in math. Just as it isn't possible to
proficiently play an instrument without practice, it isn't possible to have a
winning sports team without practice, it isn't possible to put on an excellent
dramatic production without practice, and it isn't possible to be proficient
in mathematical reasoning without practice. NO, I do not expect
the homework to be perfect. What is expected, however, is that you will THINK
about every problem, and make a good-faith effort to complete each problem ON
PAPER.
In addition, it is a good thing for you to learn good work and study habits.
DO NOT WAIT to start your homework. Reread the notes from the class,
annotating them as necessary for clarity, and then do the homework the night
it's assigned. Then it's done! Also, if you have questions, you can ask me
the next day before it's due!
You say you grade homework for completion, and I did it all, but didn't get a perfect score. WHY NOT?
I truly believe that homework is practice....and that practice shouldn't be
marked down for inaccuracy. As a result, I only grade on completion. However,
practice is only effective if it is done completely.
After watching students and student behavior for 5 years, I have developed the
following guidelines. The trade-off for a completion grade is:
(a) the question asked must be answered, not the question you want to
answer. This is actually a huge issue -- if a student has to think to
reach a solution, he/she tends to either leave it blank (no credit there) or
put down something, anything which might fool me because it's only completion,
right? If I ask you about why the clouds are red in the morning, and you tell
me how pretty the mountains are when they are purple, you didn't answer the
right question. Yes, there's a vague connection, but you ignored the question
asked. You did not complete the problem.
This is an issue of critical thinking: you need to read the question, answer
it, and then READ YOUR RESULT and assess whether you answered the question
asked!
(b) you must answer ALL of the questions asked. Many of the
questions/problems ask you to do something mathematical and then explain it or
make observations about the results. Students like to skip that part because
they don't like to think that hard. However, if you get in the habit, it will
really improve your mathematical thinking and there will definitely be an
uptick in your understanding!
To maximize your homework score, complete EVERY assigned question. Be sure to
READ the problem and THINK about what it's asking. Show your thought process
ON PAPER to communicate you reasoning. When you reach an answer/solution,
READ the problem again, and READ your solution/answer. Does it make sense?
Did you answer every question asked? Did you do every part of the multi-part
problem? If so, then you likely have received full benefit of the practice
and earned full credit. If not, what is missing? Fix it!
I'm a genius. Why do I have to show my work?
Your work tells me a lot about you and your mathematical thinking. This helps
me see where the issues are -- is it concept or is it procedural? It also
allows me to pinpoint it for you!
Showing work helps me identify crap on paper. If the work is out there on the
edge of space and has nothing at all to do with the problem/question, there's
an issue.
Work is absolutely essential to me knowing that you did the problem
yourself rather than copying from another student or the back of the book. I
do realize that you can copy work, too, but in my experience, if a student is
too (lazy or whatever) to do the homework, he's too lazy to copy the work.
Sometimes, I'll see work from the edge of space, and yet a perfectly correct
answer. This also sends up a big red flag for obvious reasons.
If you don't show work, I can easily argue that you did not complete the
problem, regardless of whether your answer is correct.
Why do you insist on students using pencils?
Math is a sport which requires a lot of trial and error. Very few students
(teachers, too!) are able to complete complex problems without making
mistakes. Pencils allow students to erase rather than scribble out any errors
-- such scribbling makes grading very difficult!
However, I urge you to NOT erase your work right away. Many times students do
problems correctly, then second guess themselves and erase the good work. If
it's not there, I can't give it any credit.
In addition, when the papers are in pencil, it is easier for the student to
see the comments I write on the page.
Your employer will make all sorts of demands upon you in the future...wear a
uniform, button all buttons, trim your hair, wear 37 pieces of flair, etc.
In math, I am your boss. Use a pencil! If you do not have a pencil, I would
be happy to sell you a pencil for 10 cents. Being prepared for class? Priceless.
Why don't we ever have a free day?
We do! Free days are Saturday and Sunday. During the week, however, we will
be doing mathematics in my classroom EVERY DAY!
Why don't you assign extra credit work?
You can get any grade you choose to by doing the ACTUAL credit work. Too many
students are willing to do only extra credit, but never the actual credit.
There is no such thing as EXTRA credit if you haven't done the actual work for
the class.
As a result, I only assign extra credit sparingly, but I make it worth your
while. There's a catch, though. Extra credit will only affect your grade if
you have no missing assignments. If you have missing assignments, you aren't
using actual credit to its fullest potential, and can therefore not
earn anything extra.
Extra credit grades will appear in the grade book, but will have a multiplier
of zero until the end of the semester. At that time, if the student has no
missing assignments, extra credit will be applied. If there are missing
assignments, all extra credit points will go to zero.
What's with the wierd clothes?
They aren't weird -- you just can't purchase them anywhere. I like to make my
own clothing from socks to sweaters to suits.
This makes my wardrobe distinct and unique.