mathematics
Language, Actions, and Learning Math
When I was a new teacher, language and actions weren’t what I thought about first when providing math for my students with disabilities. Typically, I thought about which game or activity I would pull from my cupboard. As I look back, language and actions were precisely what I needed to think about. Language and active learning play major roles in solid math instruction. Language supports thought; active learning builds under- standing. Learning math requires talking, thinking and doing. Solving a problem requires talking, thinking and doing. I was under the wrong impression that math was all about memorization. I thought if my students memorized numbers, shortcuts and tricks, they would somehow find math useful in the real world and know how to apply it, especially if it involved a calculator. I thought if my students heard me say it, it was the same as my students saying it, doing it and understanding it. Little did I know that memorizing and shortcuts are not the substance of math; they’re just nice to know once the math concepts are learned. My students needed to actively learn and understand math concepts well enough to solve problems. Only then would math be useful to them. Only then could they use a shortcut like plug- ging numbers into a calculator or using memorized facts to solve a problem. The experience of using hands-on, multi-sensory materials to learn math concepts, language and actions is well- worth the effort, as it allows teachers the opportunity to find students’ math potential and guide them as far as they can go.
Misperceptions about math, math instruction and access to math prevail to this day. There are many myths that have misguided our instruction for decades.
These myths include:
• Students need to learn a limited set of isolated math skills, defined as ‘functional’ skills, without learning pre-requisite skills. • Students with disabilities require highly specialized ‘meth- ods’ to learn, created only for students with disabilities, which focus on memorized responses not based on math. • Differences in students with disabilities justify differences in math instruction. • Math can be taught with only games or worksheets. • Teachers need to teach the same skills to students with dis- abilities until mastered. • Math is not connected. • Problems can be solved in the real world with just a calcula- tor by simply plugging in the numbers. • Being good at math is a gift that only some people have. • Math needs to be done quickly. • Mistakes in math are only useful for determining weakness- es in skill and understanding. These practices have brought on negative results, including splinter skills, little or no progress in math goals on Individual Education Plans (IEPs), a lack of confidence, low expectations and an inability to solve problems encountered in the real world. With
Karen Ross-Brown has a BS degree in special education and MLS degree with an emphasis in assistive technology. She taught in special education for over 23 years in Minnesota and Wisconsin, special - izing in teaching students with multiple, significant disabilities. Karen joined the curriculum team at AbleNet, Inc. in 2008. She was the primary author of Equals Mathematics curriculum and co-author of Equals Math curriculum revision (2017) with Jennifer Emanuele and James LaRocco. Karen has trained teachers in AbleNet curricula across the United States. She has presented at National Council of Teachers of Mathe - matics (NCTM) National and Regional Conferences, National Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) National Conferences, Closing the Gap (CTG) Conference, and Assistive Technology Association (ATIA) Conference.
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