INTEGRATION OF CROSS-CURRICULAR INTERESTS

Integration of Cross-Curricular Interests

Throughout the curriculum development and revision process, the development team has done its best to ensure that relevance, equity, and accessibility issues are addressed in this IRP. Wherever appropriate for the subject, these issues have been integrated into the learning outcomes, suggested instructional strategies, and suggested assessment strategies. Although an exhaustive list of such issues is neither practical nor possible, teachers are encouraged to continue to ensure that classroom activities and resources also incorporate appropriate role portrayals, relevant issues, and exemplars of themes such as inclusion and acceptance.

The ministry, in consultation with experienced teachers and other educators, has developed a set of criteria to be used to evaluate learning resources. Although neither exhaustive nor prescriptive, most of these criteria can be usefully applied to instructional and assessment activities as well as learning resources. Brief descriptions of these criteria, grouped under the headings of Content, Instructional Design, Technical Design, and Social Considerations, may be found on pages 30 through 45 of the ministry document Evaluating, Selecting, and Managing Learning Resources (2000). This document has been distributed to all schools. Additional copies may be ordered from Office Products Centre (telephone 1-800-282-7955) by citing document number RB0065.

Gender Issues in Mathematics

The education system is committed to helping both male and female students succeed equally well. In British Columbia, significant progress has been made in improving the participation and success rate of female students in secondary math courses. They now take about the same number of secondary math courses as males. There continues, however, to be a relatively low rate of female participation in math-related careers and education. Positive attitudes toward the practice of mathematics, as well as skill in mathematics, are essential to the workplace and to everyone's ability to participate fully in society. Teaching, assessment materials, learning activities, and classroom environments should place value on the mathematical experiences and contributions of both men and women and people of diverse cultures.

Research regarding gender and mathematics has raised a number of important issues that teachers should consider when teaching mathematics. These include the diversity of learning styles, gender bias in learning resources, and unintentional gender bias in teaching. The following instructional strategies are suggested to help the teacher deliver a gender-sensitive mathematics curriculum.

As guest speakers or subjects of study in the classroom, feature both females and males who are mathematicians or who make extensive use of mathematics in their careers.

• Design instruction to acknowledge differences in experiences and interests between young women and young men.
  
  

• Demonstrate the relevance of mathematics to a variety of careers and to everyday life in ways that are apt to appeal to particular students in the class or school. Successful links include biology, environmental issues, and current topics in mass media.

• Explore not only the practical applications of mathematics but also the human elements, such as ways in which ideas have changed throughout history and the social and moral implications of mathematics.

• Explore ways of approaching mathematics that will appeal to a wide variety of students. Use co-operative rather than competitive instructional strategies. Focus on concept development, encouraging students to question until they can say "I've got it." Include a wide variety of applications that demonstrate the role of math in the social fabric of our world. Varying approaches appeal to a wider variety of students.

• Emphasize that ordinary people with a variety of interests and responsibilities use mathematics.

• Allow for informal social interaction with successful "math-using" members of the community to help change the negative stereotypes of mathematicians and their social style.

• Provide opportunities for visual and hands-on activities, which most students enjoy. Experiments, demonstrations, field trips, and exercises that provide opportunities to explore the relevance of mathematics are particularly important.
  

Adapting Instruction for Diverse Student Needs

Teachers will need to adapt their instructional approach to meet the diverse learning needs of their students. This may include English-as-a-second-language students (ESL), students with special needs, or students from a variety of cultural and social backgrounds. For example, teaching ESL students in any subject area including mathematics should involve a focus on language development.

The following strategies may help ESL students and students with special needs succeed in mathematics:

• Adapt the Environment


• Arrange the classroom to foster attention and interaction.
• Make use of co-operative grouping.
• Reinforce important mathematics ideas with visual representations.
  

• Adapt Presentations
  
  • Provide students with advance organizers of the key mathematical concepts.
  • Demonstrate or model new concepts and provide practice using functional, everyday contexts such as cooking.
  • Adapt the pace of activities as required.
  • Reword questions so they match the level of understanding of the students.
    

• Adapt Materials
  • Use techniques such as colour-coding the steps to solving a problem, to make the organization of activities more explicit.
  • Use manipulatives such as large dice, cards, and dominoes.
  • Use large-print charts such as a 100s chart or a times-table chart.
  • Provide students with a talking calculator or a calculator with a large keypad.
  • Use large print on activity sheets.
  • Use a variety of resources that represent various levels of complexity.
  • Highlight key points on activity sheets.
    

• Adapt Methods of Assistance


• Have peers or volunteers assist students with special needs.
  
• Have students with special needs help younger students learn mathematics.
  
• Have teacher assistants work with individuals and small groups of students with special needs.
  
• Work with consultants and support teachers to develop problem-solving activities and strategies for mathematics instruction for students with special needs.
  
• Collaborate with specialist staff such as ESL or Learning Assistance teachers to support students.

• Adapt Methods of Assessment
  
  • Allow students to demonstrate their understanding of mathematical concepts in a variety of ways, such as murals, displays, models, puzzles, game boards, mobiles, and tape recordings.
    
  • Modify assessment tools to match student needs. For example, oral tests, open-book tests, and tests with no time limit may allow students to better demonstrate their learning than a traditional timed paper-and-pencil test.
    
  • Set achievable goals.
    
  • Use computer programs that provide opportunities for students to practise mathematics as well as record and track their results.
    
  • Require fewer tasks to demonstrate learning. Focus on quality of learning and mastery rather than on volume of work done.
  
  

When students with special needs are expected to achieve or surpass the learning outcomes set out in the mathematics curriculum, regular grading practices and reporting procedures are followed. Adaptations to the environment, presentations, materials, methods of assistance, and methods of assessment can be done while still using regular reporting practices. When students with special needs are not expected to achieve the learning outcomes and individual goals and objectives are set for them, it is called modification. Modifications must be noted in an Individual Education Plan (IEP), and reporting should be based on these modified goals.

© Copyright 2001. All Rights Reserved. BC MOE Standards Department.
Maintained by: Mathematics Coordinator
Revised: September 1, 2001

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