MIT-22: Project Wrap Up for Algebro's

I started on my Manaiakalani Innovative Teacher's (MIT) project knowing that maths was a problem area for achievement in my school, especially with our Year 7&8 students. This was confirmed with our school midyear data from 2021 and 2022. 

I knew I had to find a solution but there is so much to cover in just one curriculum area. My discussions and connections with school colleagues and this year's MIT-2022 crew, I investigated the following statement:  

How might we improve student achievement in, and basic understanding of, algebra? 

At this point in a student's education, I'm trying to consolidate and extend student knowledge before they head on to high school.  However, with so many students behind their expected level of achievement it becomes even more important to give ākonga the tools, strategies and learning experiences they're going to need to confidently: 

1) Solve simple and complex mathematical problems, and   

2) Participate in mathematical discussions with success. 

Algebraic thinking is used in a wide range of contexts. Students learn how to: 

* Make more use of their basic facts knowledge and recall, 

* Manipluate numbers, variables and different operators (+ - / x), and  

* Identify patterns and relationships in numbers. 

Having the knowledge and confidence to work with these situations gives students a greater chance to succeed in maths; to possibly identify and correct their own errors in computation. 

Prototype Refinement 

My project was initially known as "The Algebra Project". The aim was to get student's leading their own video tutorials on how to solve simple algebraic equations. This is supported by the New Zealand Maths Curriculum Level 4 Achievement Objective "Students will learn to create and solve simple linear equations"; questions such as 2x + 4 = __ 

Before we could even record the videos, my target group and I had to learn how to solve such questions. We got to learning about the different parts of an algebraic equation and understanding phrases like constants, variables, operators, balancing and so forth. 

It took hours of practise for students to feel confident in their problem solving  before they felt like they could lead and record on video. The success to celebrate here is that the students eventually got to recording. My target group are an amazing students who needed constant reminding that what they were doing would be valued, and that their mana would remain intact if they got it wrong. Teaching them that it was ok to make mistakes, and to learn from these, was a huge hurdle. 

Once they'd gotten over this obstacle, they were flying. The students went from being teacher-led to student-led, especially once they saw their peers taking the lead.  

My target group used the maths website, Transum Equations, to practise solving simple algebraic equations and as a base for leading their tutorials. From here, I was able to request to my target group what video tutorials we needed. As more videos were created, I was able to add these to this project. 

Algebro's in Action 

After months of time, effort and dedication - between students, colleauges and myself - it is my pleasure to finally present to you ... 

Algebro's - Developing Year 7&8 Knowledge and Achievement in Basic Algebra

What is Algebro's? Algebro's is a digital tool aimed directly at Year 7&8 students and improving their knowledge and achievement in basic level algebra. The site features a few of the 2022 Year 7&8 students at Ruapotaka School leading a range of video tutorials and how to solve simple to to more complex algebraic equations involving one variable. 

Practise: The site also uses Transum Equations, where learners (and teachers) can use their newfound knowledge to try and answer their own algebraic equatrions. 

Supporting Learners: During the learning process, I identified a couple of key areas my class needed help with: basic facts and integers. I was able to add support page with practise for basic facts, and still working on tutorials to help with manipulating positive and negative numbers. Students also have an opportunity to "Learn, Create and Share" about the different parts of a basic algebraic equation.

 

Teacher help: There is a help page for teachers to use, advising how they can get the best use out of Algebro's. 

Feedback: I sought help and feedback for this project from a lot of people. Three other eduators and their teaching experience has featured on Algebro's, so that others may be able to see the value in teaching algebra at an intermediate year level. 

Wananga Presentation 

The presentation below was presented at the Wānanga 2022 and is the culmination of my findings for this project.