MATH TALKS DISCUSSION: Reading Skills for Mathematics

Decoding Mathematical Reasoning and Reading are not as different as you may think! math-uh-mat-iks Origin: 1350–1400; ME mathematic < L mathēmatica ( ars ) < Gk mathēmatikḕ ( téchnē ) scientific (craft), equiv. to mathēmat- (s. of máthēma ) science, knowledge + - ikē, fem. of -ikos -ic; see -ics-ic-ics

Literacy How common is literacy? Depends… What do we mean by literate? Mathematically literate? How would you define that? Arithmetic? Algebra? Calculus?

Is the student “literate”? Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write basic communication total population: 82% male: 87% female: 77% Definition: the ability to read and write at a specified age.

Practice? How much time does the average American spend reading per day? 5 minutes! This includes street signs… T-shirts… And the TV Guide… Oh, and texting.

Reading, not “The Cat in the Hat”! What do reading teachers do? Linguistics · Phonetics and phonology are concerned with the study of speech sounds. Within psycholinguistics, research focuses on how the brain processes and understands these sounds.Phoneticsphonology · Morphology is the study of word structures, especially the relationships between related words (such as dog and dogs) and the formation of words based on rules (such as plural formation).Morphology · Syntax is the study of the patterns which dictate how words are combined together to form sentences.Syntax · Semantics deals with the meaning of words and sentences. Where syntax is concerned with the formal structure of sentences, semantics deals with the actual meaning of sentences.Semanticsmeaning · Pragmatics is concerned with the role of context in the interpretation of meaning.Pragmaticscontext

Psycho- Linguistics Cognitive Theory Learning and the Brain Eye – Brain Connection How is language acquired and stored?

Socio-Linguistics Society, culture, peer groups, and you! The existence of differences in language between social classes can be illustrated by the following table:social classes Bristolian Dialect (lower class)... Standard English (higher class) I ain't done nothing... I haven't done anything I done it yesterday... I did it yesterday It weren't me that done it... I didn't do it

Which one is “right”? The differences in grammar between the two examples of speech is referred to as differences between social class dialects or sociolects. sociolects For example… is Ebonics a language?

Barriers to reading? Physical Mental Social Parental Cultural Motivational More?

Reading Level Grade level and experience? 52, 54, 56, 158 Literate in another language? Vocabulary and Comprehension

Learning Disabilities ADHD/concentration/distraction Vision and Eye Issues/physiology Dyslexia Listening Skills/hearing problems? Memory Issues More…

Personal Issues? New to the College Culture Male/female identity issues Problems at Home Esteem/confidence Issues Anxiety

Socio-Cultural Peer Group Heritage and Importance of Reading Language transfer errors Vocabulary and translation Cultural Barriers/Spelling/double meanings/implied meaning Punctuation!?

Background Knowledge? Schema and Contextual Miscues based on prior experience

The environment? too cold too noisy too...

Critical thinking habits The multiple choice society

What can a math teacher do? Vocabulary Repetition of the same word in multiple problems plus, add, more than minus, subtract, difference

Context Don’t let the facts get in the way Background is vital Provide a foundation or keep it simple!

Culture Consider the student’s cultural expectations

Language Does that word mean what you think it means? Consider language transfer errors.

Let’s look at some word problems!

More than math… What are you assuming that they know? What words? What concepts? What history? Assume???? Make an Ass out of u and me