I was talking to a friend last month. They are a qualified maths teacher and we discussed some challenges of using Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in maths.
I can understand their viewpoint that traditional methods of teaching and learning such as writing on the board and students presenting their work in an exercise book is much more effective. At the end of the day students won't be tested on a computer and hence need practice in presenting their work by hand. The teacher does use a wide variety of resources such as learning kits etc to help in students develop their practical understanding.
After some personal reflection, I realise that there is more scope than ever for using ICT to help students learn.
Many students despise maths and ICT can make maths more interesting for students.
The rise of Ipads in the classroom has given opportunities for teachers to use to satisfy ICT requirements.
Last year, I was asked to identify suitable apps to support teaching and learning. This site contained a list of apps that are available for Maths. Calculators, quizzes, instructional videos are some of the apps that are available. As time progresses they will surely be refined.
And just browsing around today is helping me to identify possible resources that can help teachers. A wiki that I located has a list of resources that a maths teacher can use in a lesson. I like the fact they provide teaching resources to allow students to develop their mathematical understanding by using online sites such as Google Earth. I can even see a cross curricular link right there with Geography.
