AME Institute 2013 (Secondary School Teachers)

There are two workshops. Participants are to sign up for ONE of the workshop only.

WORKSHOP ONE WORKSHOP TWO

WORKSHOP ONE: Learning Experience - Algebra as Context

Workshop Facilitators
Professor Margaret Brown and Professor Jeremy Hodgen (King’s College, London)

Dates
4 Jun (6 hours) & 5 Jun 2013 (4 hours)

Time
9.30am to 4.30pm (4 June)
9.30am to 1.30pm (5 June)

Venue
Academy of Singapore Teachers (AST),
TRAINING ROOM 13@MRC (BLK B LEVEL 3)

Registration Fees

*Early bird rate Normal rate
AME member 130 150
non-AME member 150 170

*The early bird registration closes on 1 May 2013 or as soon as capacity is full.

Registration
Click here to register

WORKSHOP TWO: Constructing Understanding in Geometry and Developing Geometric Thinking at Secondary School Level

Workshop Facilitators
Dr Hang Kim Hoo and Dr Lee Chan Lye (NUS High School)

Dates
4 Jun (6 hours) & 5 Jun 2013 (4 hours)

Time
9.30am to 4.30pm (4 June)
9.30am to 1.30pm (5 June)

Venue
Academy of Singapore Teachers (AST),
TRAINING ROOM 14@MRC (BLK B LEVEL 3)

Registration Fees

*Early bird rate Normal rate
AME member 130 150
non-AME member 150 170

*The early bird registration closes on 1 May 2013 or as soon as capacity is full.

Registration
Click here to register

WORKSHOP ONE Abstract
Although students may learn how to manipulate algebraic expressions, they often have problems applying algebra to solve both realistic and abstract mathematical problems. This seems to be connected with insufficient understanding of the meaning of letters, especially when letters refer to variables rather than generalised numbers or specific unknown numbers.

In England we at King’s College London, as part of a large project on ‘Increasing Confidence and Competence in Algebra and Multiplication Structures (ICCAMS)’, have recently carried out a large scale survey of students’ algebraic understanding across Years 7-9 (Grades 6-8). We have also interviewed students in pilot schools working in groups solving these and similar problems. We will discuss with teachers some of the student responses in these interviews and survey problems and what they might suggest about student thinking and how they might reflect previous learning experiences. We will discuss whether Singapore pupils are likely to have given similar responses.

We will then work on ways of providing learning experiences for pupils which will better support their understanding of the ideas of algebraic variables and functional relationships. We will discuss problems and lesson outlines that we have recently designed with pilot teachers as part of the ICCAMS project, were based on the survey results. The lessons and ‘starter activities’ are devised to enrich learning experiences for pupils and support to teacher planning by focusing on formative assessment (‘assessment for learning’). We will share many of these activities and lesson outlines, and discuss video extracts of classroom lessons. These activities have been shown to roughly double the rate of student learning.

WORKSHOP TWO Abstract
This workshop will engage participants through a range of instructional strategies to effectively enable students to construct the key conceptual understanding in learning geometry within the Singapore secondary mathematics curriculum. These include developing geometric thinking through careful conceptual scaffolding and problem solving.