Reflection on Academy Teaching

The year I taught Academy mathematics was a difficult year for many reasons. I list three broad categories.

1. It was the first year the Academy program for Bard College at Simon's Rock was launched. That is, the policies and procedures were still in development.

2.  Because it was the first year, there was no precedent for Academy mathematics or an existing syllabus for me to follow. I created my own curriculum and modify as necessary along the way.

3. This was also my first year as a full-time professor. I had to adjust to a significant number of circumstances.

I found my strength and, by the end, grew from this rewarding experience.

First semester.

Because Simon's Rock is a college for younger teens, I planned to teach Academy Math first semester like a college course. On the first day, I gave a detailed syllabus which clearly outlined supplies, classroom expectations, and semester outcomes. We went over this syllabus on the first day and spent the following 2 weeks on review. The first exam demonstrates what we covered and what I expected the students to know. This first exam was a disaster. I had little idea of the diverse mathematical backgrounds from which my students came. At this point, my students were still relatively quiet and did not share with me who they were. But, as time progressed, I learned the following

1. Because the students came from different schools, some were more advanced and others had huge gaps in their background.

2. Students need assessments other than exams for them to demonstrate their knowledge and responsibility.

I significantly slowed down the material because I realized at this stage of development, students need to spend more time doing what we consider as basic skills. When comparing exam 3 to exam 1, one can see that the material has not progressed too far. By the final exam, a majority of students were comfortable enough with the material to demonstrate they have learned.

In an attempt to give the students an assessment other than exams and quizzes, mid-semester I added a project. Students continuously asked me when they would use mathematics in real life. As part of the project, students were required to answer their own question. The project involved the students doing research on a topic they chose themselves. I received a large assortment of topics, e.g. baseball statistics, the math used to determine the trajectory to Mars, and the linear algebra used in video game programming. At first, I only required a 2 - 3 page paper. Later, I added a poster session. The purpose of the poster session was so students could take ownership and pride in their research. The students were allowed to invite family and friends and I invited other faculty. The entire project seemed to succeed as many students, faculty, and staff enjoyed it.

Second semester.

The next semester covered high school geometry. The course was designed to carry over the lessons I learned the previous semester as well as what I did do right from the start. For example, I provided them with a detailed syllabus listing classroom expectations and course outcomes.  Moreover, I included a project from the start.  Naturally, a course in geometry should include the discussion of Flatland by E. A. Abbott.  I included a list of what misbehavior in my classroom is (I discuss this more below).  Additionally, I began this course knowing I should teach at a slower pace than I would in a college course. There was no significant issue with pace. In this class, especially, going slower can be helpful since the geometry proofs can be difficult for students to do for the first time.  I provide examples of the first and final exams in order to display the material covered during the term.

However, the course was different than the Algebra course. Not only because of the material covered, but also because of the population of the students present. Over winter break, the Math department and Academy administration decided that a separation of the students based on ability would be easier for faculty to handle since it is quite difficult to cater to many different learning styles as well as many different math backgrounds. The course I was assigned to teach was the course for students who had demonstrated "accelerated skill" in mathematics the previous semester. The pace of the course was not as slow as the previous semester's pace, but I still purposely taught at a slower pace so as to cultivate the students' innate sense of geometry. We had many discussion on how to solve problems prior to learning theorems or postulates that would support our arguments.

Lessons Learned. 

Overall, my biggest struggle in the Academy was classroom management. I took two workshops on classroom behavior management as a participant in the CoAT program.  In these workshops I learned, to manage misbehavior, there are three simple tasks for the instructor. First, you must not shame students in front of the entire classroom.  Students will act out even more so simply as defense.  Second, you must reach out to the student and understand why it is they are behaving in this manner. Often times displaying compassion and understanding will earn you respect, thus curbing the misbehavior.  Lastly, you must state at the beginning of the semester what your classroom expectations are.  Misbehavior frequently comes from the fact students are not sure what they can or cannot do in your classroom. What I learned in the workshops has been invaluable in my position as a full-time faculty member. I have found great success with these techniques in my college courses.

These methods, however, did not work as effectively in the Academy. In my first semester, I was faced with misbehavior I was not equipped to handle despite my training.  For example, students frequently spoke out of turn and disrespected others' right to learn.  Although I would repeat the expectation of respect and raising hands, so one third of my tools failed.  Additionally, some students would refuse to work with another student when I created groups for group work.  I would ask the students into the hallway and scold them for not working together, but once back in the classroom, the students would sit silently side by side rather than attempt to work together.  Finally, the structure of a college math classroom I was used to (students come in and take out their notebook, I begin the day as I described, students proceed to take notes and ask questions, etc.) was not the same structure that could be applied to the Academy class because attention was significantly shorter.  In the second semester, much of this improved because I added to my syllabus a list of what I believe misbehavior is and the consequence of too many misbehavior was to be marked absent which resulted in an email home to parents.  In addition to this precaution, I randomly assigned  "behavior monitors". That is, when student B became too rowdy, I would ask student M, whose behaviors I considered positive, to inform B that they were not following classroom expectations. This made students more aware of their own behavior as well as those around them. I found this method to be effective to a certain extent.

While stressful, this portion of my experience in the Academy taught me the following

1. A list of classroom expectations cannot be stated once. They must be stated over and over.  There needs to be clear consequences for classroom rules not followed.   I need to follow through with these consequences. If possible, the list of classroom expectations should be posted so that you may point to them in order to make students aware of how they are behaving.

2. Students at the Academy level cannot sit still, and it is healthy to have them move around during class. You must schedule a minute or so for students to stretch. You must use effective command to get students to sit back down.  The positive education practices of meditation and stretching could be useful here!

3. Establish your authority early, and slowly over the semester allow the students to see your personality.

The students in the Academy may be rambunctious, but they are intelligent and passionate individuals who have not fully developed in many aspects.  It is our job as educators to help them transition into productive adults.  The journey is difficult, but when the students enter the college, they will turn out to be the leaders of the college.