Teaching – Jon Oaks

When Mathematics Gets Personal

By Jon OaksMay 11, 20200 Comments

Last year I was introduced to Personal Polynomials over at the Global Math Project through a Facebook post by a fellow educator explaining how she uses this with her calculus students. She asks them to create their own personal polynomial, and then create a graph of its first and second derivatives. Since my goal for this semester was to incorporate Inquiry-Based Learning Techniques into my College Algebra class, I decided to adapt the Personal Polynomial activity for my college algebra students. I considered just assigning the activity for homework, but I decided to take my students to the computer lab…

PreCalculus, Reflection, Teaching

What’s That on Your Cart?

By Jon OaksMay 01, 20200 Comments

When I teach classes on campus, I have a cart that I take to class that has all of my supplies on it, such as highlighters, pens, and papers. But it also has everything I need for the activities I do with my students. One day in March, I was rolling my cart down the hallway after class, and one of my colleagues asked me what I had my students do that they were excited enough that many of them stayed after class to finish. Then another colleague said that I always have interesting things on my cart and asked…

Reflection, Teaching

IBL- I Be Learning (how to teach remotely)

By Jon OaksApr 28, 20200 Comments

Before all the craziness of this semester began, I was on a quest to implement some of the Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL) Techniques that I learned last summer in my classes. You can read all about that here. But on Wednesday, March 11, I was told that IBL would now mean that I Be Learning how to teach remotely. I had never heard of remote learning before that day. I've heard of distance learning, online learning, and virtual learning, but never remote learning. I realized quickly that the biggest concern for many instructors was how they were going to test their…

Reflection, Teaching

Free Cookies and Student Success

By Jon OaksMar 03, 20200 Comments

I think we've all been there at some point. We get an email from the Art Department or the English Department or whoever it might be from asking for us to offer extra credit to our students who attend their events. However, if it is hard for us to see how the event ties in with the outcomes and objectives of our courses, then it probably even harder for our students to do so. But the students would be more than happy to attend the event if we gave them extra credit, and more than likely, they would get free…

Reflection, Teaching

Logarithms and Related Rates

By Jon OaksFeb 25, 20200 Comments

I was at the KYMATYC Conference over the weekend and was inspired by a Presentation on "Introducing Topics with Media." When I came home from the Conference, I created this page on Math in Film and Media. This was an excellent way for me to remember everything I learned during the session. It also helped me remember some things I've done in the past, which I'd forgotten. So, what does this have to do with Logarithms and Related Rates? Well, one of the Media Clips shared during the session was The Log Song – Ren & Stimpy. And this morning, a student…

Algebra, Calculus, Reflection, Teaching

I Cleaned Out My Office!

By Jon OaksFeb 16, 20200 Comments

I’ve been cleaning out my office the past couple of months, and this week I came across these resources that may be of use to someone out there - especially teaching statistics, pre-calculus, or calculus! Article - “Why You Should Read That Whole Text Book Right Now” "Don't put it off. You should read that textbook now—or you're not getting your money's worth out of your education." StatisticsArticle - “Overconfident Students, Dubious Employers”Link to Article | Probability Activity“A new study identifies the gaps between graduates' views of their skills and the views of those who hire them.”Article - “Investing In…

Calculus, PreCalculus, Statistics, Teaching

A Real Life Optimization Problem

By Jon OaksFeb 01, 20200 Comments

I am part of a team at my college working on getting new storage closets installed for my department. The options are for closets that are 30", 36", or 42" wide. The closets are 18 ¾" deep, and 63 ½" in height. In one room, the space in which the closets are to be installed is 54 ¾" x 97 ½" x 96". In another room, the space is 54 ¾" x 114" x 96". However, in the second room, there is a whiteboard rail that is 3 ¼" wide that protrudes into the space. There are also plans to…

Calculus, Everyday Math For Everyday People, Teaching

Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL) Workshops – Torrance, CA

By Jon OaksJan 25, 20200 Comments

I am glad that I attended this workshop by the Academy of Inquiry-Based Learning because it gave me lots of new ideas for my College Algebra course. It also helped to excite and re-energize, as well as renew my love for teaching. It was helpful to be around like-minded people and know that I am on the right track in doing what is best for my students. Here are some ideas from the workshop that I either have already implemented or plan to implement: Write four problems on the Board and then have students sign-up to present solutions. The student…

Reflection, Teaching

Real Life Pythagorean Theorem

By Jon OaksJan 06, 20200 Comments

So, I’d like to believe that most people know the Pythagorean Theorem. The famous a2 + b2 = c2 theorem that relates the lengths of the sides of a right triangle. Earlier this month, I was helping my mom move. The moving company requested to know the size of my mom’s televisions. Since my mom has a 1990s console-style Cathode-ray tube (CRT) television, I was going to measure the length, width, depth, and screen size so that the company would have an accurate idea of the size of the television as possible. If you didn’t know, the screen size of…

PreAlgebra, Teaching

Thoughts on Today’s Educational System

By Jon OaksDec 30, 20190 Comments

The other day I was talking with a friend who isn’t a teacher and our conversation led me to have the following thoughts: What we do in what has become today’s traditional educational system where students are expected to sit in rows and attend classes all day and then go home to do homework doesn’t work for most students. It is unnatural for someone to sit for that long at a time, let alone a younger person. In general, people do tend to learn better by being actively involved in their learning. I reminded my friend that the educational system…

Teaching