Students don’t ask me for answers to exercises; they ask questions that involve a deeper level of thinking...
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TEACHER’S TECH Abigail Brown ’96, Math Teacher Torrey Pines High School
uring her 15 years teaching, Abigail Brown ’96 has viewed technology as a key tool. After all, her students grew up with comput-
ers, socialize with Facebook, and play with video games. Using technology to learn mathematical concepts was, for them, a natural progression. At her alma mater, Torrey Pines High School
in San Diego, Brown employs tablet PCs, Mathe- matica computation software, and web-based study materials to enhance her pupils’ understanding of algebra and calculus. She creates course notes and posts them on websites for her students to down- load onto their tablet PCs. Then, they complete the formulas and exercises together in class. “The ability to see interesting, complicated
functions and experiment with ideas has changed the conversations in my classroom,” she says. “Stu- dents don’t ask me for answers to exercises; they ask questions that involve a deeper level of thinking such as what things look like, how one idea con- nects to another, and what happens if we change something.” Brown also incorporates a “reflective practice”
approach, where paired students produce pre- sentations that represent a problem symbolically, graphically, numerically and verbally—a “Rule of Four” concept she learned at HMC. Students re- ceive feedback from their classmates and review a videotape of their presentation, which allows them to reflect on their work from the viewpoint of an audience member. Brown shares her innovative approaches
through professional conferences and her website,
www.abbymath.com.
SPRING 2011 Har vey Mudd College 15
GARY PAYNE
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