I'm excited the list might be back in action!
I also use Krantz's "How to Teach Mathematics" and students like his
descriptions of sectioning off the boards. I have a couple of faculty
members in our dept. who's boardwork I think is fabulous, and I have
my GTAs observe other instructors twice each quarter. If someone is
really struggling with their boardwork, I steer them towards those
faculty members' classes.
I had a thought about collecting images of peoples' boardwork to use
for discussion, so I just googled "boardwork images". These three
exhibit different pros and cons of boardwork, and might be good for
discussion (they are all chalkboard, though, not whiteboard).
http://www.maths.abdn.ac.uk/~spark/2006Boardwork%20005.jpghttp://www.math.byu.edu/~peterson/Boardwork%201.jpghttp://lh4.ggpht.com/_1AiAsLI6PeI/Rwm4YgSk0gI/AAAAAAAABGU/ivmw0obi1D4/P1010…
When I observe GTAs teaching, I tend to pay attention to two aspects
of boardwork, depending on when I drop into their classes.
If I get there at the start, I like to make myself a little grid and
mark where they move across the board. For some students, my notes
look like
1 2 3 4
5 6 7 8
For other students, my notes might look like
1 2
5 3 4
When I show them my notes, we can have a discussion about efficient
use of boardspace, and organization. Organization and clarity of
writing usually boil down to slowing down, so sometimes I just have to
help give GTAs permission to go over 5 examples each class instead of
8!
If I get to a class in the middle of class, I check to see whether I
can figure out what is going on based on the snapshot of the board
when I enter the room. So I will copy down everything I see and start
observing from there. If a student comes in late, or can't look away
from the board without losing track of what's happening, there's
probably a problem with the organization of the lecture and the
organization of the board.
I also encourage GTAs to walk to the back of the room while their
boardwork is up (either at break, or at the end of class before they
erase everything), and give themselves the same "snapshot check". How
do things look? Do they follow what went on?
Best,
Christine
On Thu, Feb 11, 2010 at 9:00 AM,
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> 1. Resources on Chalkboard Technique? (Bruff, Derek O)
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> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Wed, 10 Feb 2010 12:28:55 -0600
> From: "Bruff, Derek O" <derek.bruff(a)Vanderbilt.Edu>
> Subject: [PSTUM-list] Resources on Chalkboard Technique?
> To: "pstum-list(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu"
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> <EB8466F614CE0A44A0DB470E7911435610F34DEBD3(a)ITS-HCWNEM04.ds.Vanderbilt.edu>
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> Yes, the Preparing and Supporting Teachers of Undergraduate Mathematics (PSTUM) listserv is still operational! I have a question that, I think, is perfect for this listserv.
>
> Do you know of any good resources on good chalkboard / whiteboard techniques? Ones worth sharing with grad students just learning good boardwork? Steven Krantz has a good section on this subject in his book, How to Teach Mathematics, but it doesn't include any visual examples. Know of any good resources along these lines?
>
> Thanks,
> Derek
>
> --
> Derek Bruff, Ph.D.
> Assistant Director, Center for Teaching
> Senior Lecturer, Department of Mathematics
> Vanderbilt University
> www.vanderbilt.edu/cft/<http://www.vanderbilt.edu/cft/>
> www.derekbruff.com/teachingwithcrs/<http://www.derekbruff.com/teachingwithcrs/>
> twitter.com/derekbruff<http://twitter.com/derekbruff>
>
>
Yes, the Preparing and Supporting Teachers of Undergraduate Mathematics (PSTUM) listserv is still operational! I have a question that, I think, is perfect for this listserv.
Do you know of any good resources on good chalkboard / whiteboard techniques? Ones worth sharing with grad students just learning good boardwork? Steven Krantz has a good section on this subject in his book, How to Teach Mathematics, but it doesn't include any visual examples. Know of any good resources along these lines?
Thanks,
Derek
--
Derek Bruff, Ph.D.
Assistant Director, Center for Teaching
Senior Lecturer, Department of Mathematics
Vanderbilt University
www.vanderbilt.edu/cft/<http://www.vanderbilt.edu/cft/>
www.derekbruff.com/teachingwithcrs/<http://www.derekbruff.com/teachingwithcrs/>
twitter.com/derekbruff<http://twitter.com/derekbruff>
