MATH VALUES

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Learning about Mathematicians through Journaling

By Carolyn Otto, Associate Professor of Mathematics, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire

“The instructor’s teaching methods motivate me to learn the subject.” This is one of the prompts on the instructor evaluations that students use to critique me at the end of the semester. When I first started teaching, I thought my enthusiasm and creative examples would be enough to solicit a positive rating. While those qualities of my teaching seemed to meet this criterion, this prompt has always stuck with me as I prepare my courses. What motivates me to learn about math? What types of activities inspire me to investigate and learn about the topic?

This led to the incorporation of journal writing into my classroom. Giving students the opportunity to express their motivations and goals about learning mathematics through writing allows me to understand their perspective. Every few weeks, I provide the students with prompts to guide them to investigate a topic, read an article, or research a mathematician and then write their reflections on that task. These journal entries are usually 1-2 pages, enough to thoroughly give reactions, but short enough not to be a large burden. 

The main type of journaling prompts I assign are investigations of current mathematicians. Many students told me their impressions of math: there is nothing new to discover and they are just reciting facts that “dead white men” learned. It is hard to get students excited when they think there is nothing new to discover and no one they can identify with who is active in mathematical research. Throughout the course of a semester, each student learns about a collection of mathematicians, writes about the mathematicians’ research and experiences in the field, and shares their personal reflections about their findings. 

These journaling assignments were created with the following specific learning objectives: 

  • Provide exposure to other mathematicians, specifically from historically underrepresented groups. 

  • Establish and expand students’ appreciation of mathematics and mathematicians. 

  • Develop and enhance students’ writing and communication skills in mathematics. 

  • Foster a sense of community in the classroom through discussion. 

The larger objective is to supply motivation to learn the course material but give students the ability to seek out that motivation with a little guidance. 

During the remainder of this article, I will give in detail prompts I use for two of these journaling projects. I will close with a list of some useful resources. 

One of the first journaling assignments has the student learn about two mathematicians featured on the website “Lathisms: Latinxs and Hispanics in the Mathematical Sciences” and a bit about their research. 

  1. Go to the website Lathisms: Latinxs and Hispanics in the Mathematical Sciences and explore the website. 

  2. Select two mathematicians and talk with your group members about who you picked. Everyone at your pod needs to write about different mathematicians. 

  3. Complete the following for each mathematician you selected: 

    1. Name of the mathematician

    2. Biographical Information about the mathematician

    3. Write a one-to-two-page summary about this mathematician and their research. (You may need to use other sources for enough information; see me for help understanding if needed.)

    4. Why did you pick this mathematician? Did you relate with them on some level?

After students complete the journal assignment, we have group discussions highlighting these mathematicians and share them with the class. I also do this activity and share my findings. I select mathematicians that have research that relates (possibly only tangentially) to the content of the material we are covering at the time to incorporate this activity together with course material. 

In addition to learning about mathematicians, I also assign a journal entry using the book: Living Proof: Stories of Resilience Along the Mathematical Journey. (Many of these prompt ideas were shared by Dr. Heather Russell.) 

  1. Go to the PDF of the book Living Proof. You are to pick two entries (one must be from “Part II: Who Are These People? Do I Even Belong?”) and complete the following prompts: 

    1. Which essay did you choose? 

    2. Who is the author? Please share some details about this person either that you read in the essay or that you can find elsewhere. 

    3. Briefly summarize the essay. 

    4. Why did you choose this essay? Give your reaction to the essay. For instance, were you surprised at what the author shared? Did you identify with this person’s perspective?

  2. If you had to write your own essay for this book at this moment in your life, what might you focus on? What wisdom, insights, and/or thoughts might you share about your mathematical path? 

Similar to other journal entries, students share their responses in groups and discuss their reflections. 

These journal writing assignments have provided my students with the opportunity to learn that there is more to math education than just formulas. By learning about individuals who are currently involved in the study of mathematics and their journeys, my students are able to see a different side of the subject. In addition, I am able to learn more about my students through their writing and reflections which in turn creates a more productive and informational learning environment.  

RESOURCES: Provided below is a small collection of outstanding resources that I use for my journaling assignments.

Mathematically Gifted and Black. Created by Dr. Erica Graham, Dr. Raegan Higgins, Dr. Candice Price, and Dr. Shelby Wilson. 

Lathisms: Latinxs and Hispanics in the Mathematical Sciences. Founded by Dr. Alexander Diaz-Lopez, Dr. Pamela E. Harris, Dr. Prieto-Langarica, and Dr. Gabriel Sosa. 

Indigenous Mathematicians. Founded by Kyle Dahlin, Rebecca Barcia, Ashlee Kalauli, Marissa Loving, and Kamuela Yong. 

Spectra: The Association for LGBT Mathematicians. Current board of Andrew Bernoff, Juliette Bruce, Ron Buckmire, David, Crombeque, Moon Duchin, Chris Goff, Concha Gomez, Mike Hill, Alex Hoover, Lily Khadjavi, Doug Lind, and Alex Wiedemann. 

Living Proof: Stories of Resilience Along the Mathematical Journey. Edited by Allison K. Henrich, Emille D. Lawrence, Matthew A. Pons, and David G. Taylor.