Interview Review

Based on our interviews, I have found that a student teacher needs to have extended knowledge not only on math but also on other science courses. That’s the reality of a substitute teacher. We need to prepare for the unexpected classes to teach. For math teaching, I not only need to know how to solve the problem, but also need to know other different ways to solve it and understand it. As a teacher, we also need to deal with other issues such as grading on students, which sometimes is the greatest challenge even for seasoned teachers. Also, classroom management skill is the key to student's success. Especially for lower grades, effective teaching also means to manage the students effectively. For students’ interviews, I notice that the likes and dislikes of math are closely related to how well the students feel they can do on math subject. It’s more likely that the students will study hard on math and do well if the teachers encourage them and help them do well at the beginning. Most students agree that math is useful, but only on the basic calculation level. If we can provide more useful (not make up unrealistic ones) real life and work examples, students will gain further understanding of math’s role in our society and have better motives (other than go to the University) to study well in math. For example, how do experienced carpenters find a perpendicular line to the existing line?