Reflection on Critical Literacy Class

While I will try to post again even though our class has come to a close, I would like to reflect on how the class has influenced my teaching practices this past semester. Taking the critical literacy class has encouraged me to think about teaching math in some completely innovative ways. I'm not only teaching the mathematical concepts, but also teaching students to think critically about the concepts and find relevance in their daily lives. It is tougher to teach, but students benefit in the long run. Concepts are less likely to be remembered than skills. Skills that are developed become habits and are likely to be applied to other areas of learning or life.

By including a critical literacy perspective in my teaching students who have a math phobia are more likely to take an interest and gain confidence as perhaps they find more sense in the math. A lot of times if students do not have a strong foundation and have done poorly in math in their earlier years of learning, they are completely disheartened and have given up by the time they get to the high school level. Incorporating language, having discussions, and hopefully making sense of the math by getting students to think away from just the numbers and mechanics will encourage students to build back some of that lost confidence.

I feel that I have become a better teacher as a result of thinking about some of these issues. I still feel that I could do more, but I do think that it takes time. As Vivian said, after teaching a particular level a few times, one finds certain big issues to teach in the entire curriculum rather than the big list of 20 standards or teaching objectives. After being able to wrap one's head around the big picture it becomes easier to find methods of incorporating critical literacy perspectives into the daily practices.