Deshler High School

Caacie, Nancy, and Debbie in Jackson Square after a French Quarter dinner.

Math in "The Big Easy" --Project Summary:
July 9th, three Tuscumbia math teachers arrived in New Orleans for the 26th Annual High Schools That Work Conference. Like our most famous resident, Helen Keller, we faced many obstacles: a new course of study based on the Common Core State Standards, end of course tests, years without professional development, and no curriculum director. Desperate for a miracle, the chairman of the math department, Nancy Rogers, applied for a grant from rFund for Teachers. 

“Engaging Students Intellectually, Emotionally, Socially, and Behaviorally in Learning” was the conference theme. Our quest for knowledge and inspiration began with a pre-conference workshop entitled “Advancing Mathematics Achievement: Developing Standards-Based Plans”. We gained a vision of how to prepare students to master more rigorous math objectives. Actively participating ourselves, we learned how to teach differently, how to pair students in learning groups, how to motivate students to collaborate and present new material, how to effectively compose and ask leading questions. We experienced a productive struggle.

We set out to attend as many sessions as possible. We later met to share the exciting ideas over gumbo and bread pudding. Back in the hotel, we poured over conference choices to maximize learning opportunities. We attended mentoring programs, mini-activities to reinforce math skills, high level math thinking, graduation rate, college and career readiness, and effective teaching time.

At a Court of Two Sisters jazz brunch, we marveled at all we had learned. Helen Keller would have been proud

 

Article in the Fund for Teachers Odyssey Magazine : Finding Common Core Strategies in the Crescent City  (Scrolled down to page 5/6)

Last modified: Tuesday, November 25, 2014, 1:22 PM