If you’re looking for a link to a presentation from a conference or event, go to the Resources tab.
Presentations can be customized for your event, audience, and facilities. If you’re not finding exactly what you’re looking for please ask.
Organizing Your Digital Self
Going “digital” can be a bit overwhelming. How do you keep track of your links, files, blogs, email, and website materials? How do you go about organizing and sifting through the vast array of resources on the Internet and turning them into an easy-to-use and coherent set of learning materials for the classroom or online environment? People always tell me that they can’t believe I get so much done – it’s easy if you have the right tools! I don’t claim to have all the answers, but I’ll tell you what seems to work for me (and what hasn’t).
Web 2.0 for You
In the second generation of web resources, technology proliferation is increasing at an exponential rate… seriously, I’m a mathematician… I’ve seen the numbers. It is becoming vitally important that we all teach our students so-called 21st century skills and begin to become “clickable” ourselves. I have been reading blogs, websites, books, national reports, and surveys; watching YouTube, TeacherTube, and podcasts; using wikis, mindmaps, and virtual classrooms. Let me show you some web resources and technology that can invigorate your professional development, spice up your teaching, and possibly even engage your students. I’ve got resources for every discipline and I will focus on the free ones that you can immediately begin using.
There’s More to the Web than Facebook
If you think the Internet is for playing games, catching up with friends, and downloading music and videos, you’re right! But there’s a lot more out there that you could be using to help you with your education. Use Mindmaps to organize a research topic for that long paper. Find another lecture or a tutorial on a topic you’re having trouble with. Meet with a group online to discuss a group project. Write a paper with a group without emailing it back and forth. Watch some of the most mindblowing video clips on cutting-edge research. Facebook IS great, but there are other Internet applications you should check out too!
Starting from Scratch
Perhaps you missed the online math boat when it sailed, or maybe you just have to prepare to teach a new course online for the first time. How can you get ready for this monumental task if you are starting with no digital materials? Here are some tips to get you moving on what might otherwise seem like a high expectation.
Teaching from the Online Calculus Trenches
Calculus is a difficult course to learn when you are in a traditional classroom. Move the course online, and not only is it hard, but there are a multitude of technical obstacles to overcome. How do students show work? How do you effectively communicate mathematical concepts on a text-based message board? How can you provide instruction so that students actually watch and listen? I don’t claim to have all the answers, but certainly my experiences over the last year have provided some. My avatar reminds students about important events. I’ve figured out how to get paper tests back in the hands of students electronically with little fuss. My students have learned some HTML and how to use online screencast programs to share their work and help each other. If you’re planning to put one of these graphics-intensive math courses online, I can help you flatten the learning curve.
Blogology: Self-Education, Reflective Thinking, and Mass Storage
Bloggers filter an avalanche of information about teaching, mathematics, technology, and many other subjects into a concentrated feed of short articles. Many academic blog authors start their blogs in their own personal quest to learn or reflect on their teaching, research, or learning. There are math blogs, for example, about teaching math with technology, math trivia, research in abstract algebra, math education, and math in the news. A blog is simply a website housing an archive of articles. To begin sampling the math blogosphere, all you really need is the Internet, some blog addresses to get you started, and some way to bookmark some of your favorite blogs. The presentation will highlight a representative selection of ten math blogs (from a longer list of math blogs that will be provided to participants). In order to use blog reading as an ongoing professional development routine, participants will also be given some guidance for participating (commenting) on blogs and a tutorial on the use of a blog reader and RSS feeds to manage their reading. Not everyone will be satisfied with just reading and commenting on blogs. By starting your own blog, you can begin a focused study on a particular topic, find a community of like-minded enthusiasts, or just perform routine brain dumps for those moments when you feel like an absent-minded-professor. Advice will be given about blogging without getting yourself into trouble with your academic institution. Blogging isn’t for everyone, but at least blog reading should be!
Best of the Educational Technology Freebies
The economy is slumping and so is your department budget. Luckily for you, lots of programs can be used for free! Use the resources in this presentation to tackle the technology problems that haunt you – online office hours, course design, avatars, surveys, image-sharing, video-capture, mindmaps, website-building, and much more.
Using the Internet to Spice Up Your Math Class
During this interactive presentation, we explore a collection of math-related materials including digital libraries, open courseware, interactive demos, clever videos, and new search methods. You should be able to go home and begin immediately incorporating material into any of your math courses.
