Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Denver's Tech Sessions: Do they meet the CLIME Standard?

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If the number of technology sessions (updated) indicates a tech Benchmark for conferences, then having 28% of the 700+ sessions is a good number. This certainly satisfies my goal of having the technology principle be noticed even without an overt strand designation in its name. In fact, if you use the NCTM search tool for the topic technology only 52 sessions (7% of the total) will appear. That's why CLIME continues to try to give a more accurate perspective on  how much technology there is or will be in Denver. Jeff Shih, program chair, promised me a good turn out of sessions and he was right. But as followers of this website know, the desire for a larger math 2.0 presence is desired. What's math 2.0 you ask? I describe it as a synergy of three components of the learning environment which includes (1) using dynamic math tools (2) use of Web 2.0 tools and (3) being a part of a dynamic learning community. This synergy produces study paths that are truly engaging, student centered, leading edge, and 21st century. What follows are some sesssions that I would go to anticipating a conversation that informs me about math 2.0 attributes.

1. Dynamic Math software
5 -     Chaos Games and Fractal Images
46 -   Collecting Live Data in Fathom
80 -   The Mathematics of Angry Birds
180 - Getting Serious about Games in Middle Grades Math (Lure of the Labyrinth)
207 - Do the Function Dance with Sketchpad 5
283 - The Gamification of Math: Research, Gaming Theory, and Math Instruction
502 - Help Students Dig into Data, Statistics, and Probability with TinkerPlots
279 - Math and Geography: Using Google Earth to Investigate Mathematics
609 - Mobile Math: Understanding the CORE Mathematics in Mobile Apps (CORE Math Tools)

2. Web 2.0 Tools
157 - Math Journal 2.0: Jump-Start Your Students' Reflections (blogging)
447 - Movie Making in Math
468 - Scan It, Solve It, Show It (QR Codes, BYOD-Bring your own device)
565 - Blogarithms: Converting Number Concepts into Talking Points
586 - Moving Beyond the Right Answer: Developing Students’ Math Communication Skills
707 - Sharing Student Lessons with iBooks Author, iBooks, and an iPad
717 - Effective Use of Virtual Manipulatives: Ready to Create Your Own?
724 - Viral Math Videos: A Hart-to-Hart Conversation

3. Dynamic Learning Communities
27 - Following Beginning Teachers’ Experiences through Online Communities: Proof of Reflection
143 - PLC: The Practices, the Lessons, the Collaborative
680 - An Invitation to Experience Online Lesson Study Firsthand

4. Math 2.0 Curriculum
141 - Learning Online and Outdoors: Integrating Geocaching into the Mathematics Classroom
184 - Keeping It Real: Teaching Math through Real-World Topics (mathalicious.org)
402 - Stories and Technology: Providing Mathematics Opportunities for All
560 - Powerful Online Tools Promote Powerful Mathematics (Illuminations)
684 - Tools and Technology for Modern Math Teaching (Dan Meyer)
685 - Computers in Early Childhood: Getting the Best of All Worlds
More about these sessions in the next blog.