At the beginning of the semester, a diagram of a methods class might look somewhat like the one to the left. The skew lines going off in all different directions are representations of the teacher candidates (that's you!) and the circle in the middle could represent the methods class (that's C&I 241!). Do you see the yellow point on the circle. That is often a good representation of a topic in the methods class. The instructor is trying to focus on a particular aspect of mathematics education, but because of the different contexts of your practice teaching environments, it is quite difficult to instersect (i.e., make connections) with all of the teacher candidates. It is my goal to begin with the flat dimensional diagram to the left and, over the course of the semester, develop into the 3 dimensional model below. Here, the connections are numerous and are of all different types. There is a support structure that inherent to this diagram, and I hope, to C&I 241. It is a richer picture of what practice teaching and an accompanying methods course can be. Let us see if we can develop our own sphere of learning.
The purpose of the C&I 241 Methods course is at least three-fold:
(1) To provide you a base of support as you make the transition from student to practicing member of the profession.
(2) To examine methods of delivering mathematics instruction to meet the needs of diverse learners in a diverse world.
(3) To immerse you in the emerging field of mathematics education research and thought, thus enabling you to continue the lifelong learning and professional development that is crucial in a changing world.
