NCSSM Math instructor Hector Rosario visits students in Northampton County. Photo: Joyce Ventimiglia, CC BY-NC-SA

Mathematics is a difficult subject for many students, but NCSSM math instructor Hector Rosario feels that it does not need to be that way.  In Math Makes Sense!: A Constructivist Approach to the Teaching and Learning of Mathematics, a book he co-authored, Rosario says that math, like so many other fields of knowledge, developed alongside people’s need to better understand and interpret the world. Math is more than just a series of rules and formulas. And as such, math should be taught using contexts that are meaningful to students. Math should help students make sense of the world around them.

Rosario believes that a knowledge of math and problem-solving skills can empower students with the skills they need no matter what path they choose in life. To better prepare students for the challenges they may face, Rosario and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics have created a video series on mathematical problem-solving. The videos include 10 different problem-solving strategies, such as logical reasoning, pattern recognition, working backwards and solving a simpler analogous problem.

The problem-solving video series is aimed at students who want to be challenged with interesting mathematical ideas, and can be used by teachers who wish to give their students a stronger foundation in problem-solving skills.

 

View Video Playlist on YouTube

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• May 03, 2016
• problem-solving video