Tips from Award Winning Teachers

Scott Carpenter
Granville High School
Granville, OH
Award winning teacher from one of Ohio's premiere high schools

What are the keys to your success as a math teacher

a. I believe one key is early on in my career I adopted the philosophy that I teach kids via the topic of mathematics. You have to let go of that mathematics is "king" mind-set and use mathematics as a way to help kids.

b. I too believe the sooner you become "comfortable in your skin", the quicker your students will trust you. Making mistakes, saying. "I don't know", and being human is OK. This is all part of establishing mutual respect with your students. The days of the teacher as the authority figure are gone (click the link to the right to read more)

Alex Kajitani
2009 California Teacher of the Year
Top 4 Finalist for National Teacher of the Year
The Rappin' Mathematician

What got you interested in math

When I was in the 10th grade, I missed a few days of geometry class due to illness. When I returned, I had no idea what was going on. Instead of going in after school and asking for help, I began to sink deeper and deeper into cluelessness. Quickly, my cluelessness turned to apathy, and when it was time to take the end-of-semester, I sat in front of it for an hour, not knowing how to do a single problem. It was a horrible feeling. It was a Friday, and the next day, I went to the library with my geometry book, and spent my entire Saturday figuring out what was happening. As I began to teach myself the math, I fell in love with it, and knew that I wanted to be a math teacher. I also realized that so many of our students don't get the help they need, and instead, declare themselves "bad at math," and begin to live a life without it. This is a great detriment to our schools, and society. (click the link above to read more)

Shaun Boening
2012 Dow Excellence in Education Award
Northridge High School
Math Teacher

The keys to my success as a math teacher are patience and encouragement of students to work through struggles and not settle for just their first wrong answer. I also really focus on showing students and allowing students multiple methods to solve a problem. I then encourage them to go with what's comfortable and not just Mr. Boening's way. (click the link on the right to read more)

Dr. Jocelyn Cosgrave, Principal
Muskingum Valley New Tech Academy (now back with Reynoldsburg)
Zanesville, OH

PrBL - The WHY Factor

Sorry, math teachers. I was the nightmare math student who would sit through the entire math lesson and then at the end raise my hand and dare to ask the burning question, "When will I ever use this?" Just in the past three years as I helped design a middle school STEM feeder program in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, and then as I attended training for my new position as the principal of a Project-Based Academy in Zanesville High School, I have come to realize that there is hope out there for all of you poor math teachers who have been putting up with annoying students like me for years. The answer? Problem-Based Learning (PrBL). Problem-Based Learning gives all students, not just the ones brave enough to ask, the WHY behind what they are learning. (click the pirate logo above to read more)

Jill McLaughlin
2007 Dow Excellence in Education Award
6th Grade Math Teacher
Northridge Middle School
Johnstown, Ohio

What are the keys to your success as a math teacher?

I think the keys to success are first and foremost a positive attitude. Secondly, I try very hard to show examples several different ways so that hopefully one of those ways will click with the students. Also, students today are technology driven. Therefore, finding technology and websites to help enhance their learning is exactly what drives the students to want to learn more. I also think patience pays a big part in it… it would be easy to pull out my hair the 5th time a student calls an equilateral triangle an isosceles triangle… but persistence pays off and eventually they will get that "equal" part at the beginning clues them into equal sides!! (click the link above to read more)

Melissa Sanders
Curriculum Coach
Former Math Teacher
Newark (Ohio) City Schools

What are the keys to your success as a math teacher?

I feel that teaching is an art, and you have to love what you do to be successful. But with the wisdom that comes with 35 years experience, I would say "planning and patience" are keys to being successful. You have to plan with clear learning targets, not just activities, and realize that all students do not learn at the same pace or in the same manner, so being flexible is also a key component. (click the Wildcats link to read more)

Tyler Brown
Math Teacher
Lakewood High School / Zane State
2012 Adjunct Professor Of the Year at Zane State

What is the biggest difference between teaching college and high school students?

Each require a high level of accountability and evaluation standards. The biggest difference is that college instructors only speak to the students in terms of progress and performance. However, passage and completion rates are a critical piece of student success which are monitored by the college. (click the ZSC link to read more)