ERIC Number: EJ1312596
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021-Sep
Pages: 5
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0025-5769
EISSN: N/A
Walking Away from a Mathematics Problem Is OK
Champagne, Zachary
Mathematics Teacher: Learning and Teaching PK-12, v114 n9 p691-695 Sep 2021
Providing students the autonomy and choice to learn when productive struggle becomes unproductive is a core teaching belief in the author's classroom. The author teaches in a multiage classroom where he has 16 first- and second-grade students, ages 6, 7, and 8. Like other educators, he believes in the importance of productive struggle. The author wants his students to understand that working toward a solution, even when that path is tricky and challenging, is worthwhile. But what he does not want is tears. No mathematics problems are worth tears. The author wants to help his students find the line between productive struggle (NCTM 2014) and unproductive struggle (Warshauer 2011). In this article, the author shares the story of what happens in his classroom when a student needs to walk away from a mathematics problem.
Descriptors: Mathematics Instruction, Problem Solving, Grade 1, Grade 2, Elementary School Students, Elementary School Mathematics, Teaching Methods, Difficulty Level, Student Empowerment
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. 1906 Association Drive, Reston, VA 20191. Tel: 800-235-7566; Tel: 703-620-9840; Fax: 703-476-2570; e-mail: publicationsdept@nctm.org; Web site: https://pubs.nctm.org/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Early Childhood Education; Elementary Education; Grade 1; Primary Education; Grade 2
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A