Enabling Student Discovery in the Classroom with Jay Meadows

07/22/20 • 44 min

In this episode, listen to a riveting conversation between Get More Math founder and podcast host, Josh Britton, and Jay Meadows. During Jay's time in the classroom, his teaching philosophy was to never give any answers but empower his students to figure out the problems.
Episode Highlights:

the excitement students feel when they figure out answers to their own problems
teaching is like brain surgery, but without cutting
how Jay conducted his classroom
how kids discovering answers for themselves sticks in the long term
helping kids discover their own capacity in the classroom

We hope you enjoy this discussion and are encouraged to continue using Get More Math in your classroom or interested to learn more about how you can start using Get More Math.
Great news! Our show was selected as one of the top 25 Podcasts for Teachers!
Thank you for all of the support thus far. If you’d like to know more or see what it’s all about, we’d like to give you a free trial! Go to GetMoreMath.com to learn more.
About our Guest
Jay has been working in education for over 25 years. Many years ago, Jay was a Peace Corps volunteer in the Altai Mountains of Kazakhstan where he worked to help establish a school that focused on the English language, environmental science, and economics. Jay spent several years working on educational exchange programs for the US State Department before spending a decade in a middle school in Vermont teaching math and science. Jay has spent the past three years working as the Chief Education Officer for Exemplars, who focus on developing performance tasks for students grades K-12.
Jay's mission in life is to help prepare students to solve the problems of the 21st Century. Jay's favorite job was working as a Divemaster on the tropical island of Koh Tao in Thailand for a year. Jay is currently working on his second master's degree through the Vermont Mathematics Institute in Mathematics.

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the excitement students feel when they figure out answers to their own problems
teaching is like brain surgery, but without cutting
how Jay conducted his classroom
how kids discovering answers for themselves sticks in the long term
helping kids discover their own capacity in the classroom

cla

Previous Episode

Interleaving in Math with Anne Agostinelli

In this episode, we're having a conversation with math teacher and coach, Anne Agostinelli, focusing on the concept of Interleaving in Math. Anne and Josh go back and forth defining interleaving, how she's implemented interleaving in her lessons, and how her students respond to this method.
In this episode we discuss:

How interleaving focuses more on the big picture so that when you're practicing, you're practicing a lot of different things at once, not just one skill that you did that day in class
What interleaving homework assignments look like
How her students responded to interleaving
The idea of "desirable difficulty"
Blocked practice vs interleaved
Transitioning from blocked to interleaved

Resources Mentioned:

Interleaving in Math by Poojah K. Agarwal and Anne Agostinelli
Powerful Teaching by Pooja K. Agarwal

We hope you enjoy this discussion and are encouraged to continue using Get More Math in your classroom or interested to learn more about how you can start using Get More Math.
Great news! Our show was selected as one of the top 25 Podcasts for Teachers!
Thank you for all of the support thus far. If you’d like to know more or see what it’s all about, we’d like to give you a free trial! Go to GetMoreMath.com to learn more.
About our Guest
Anne Agostinelli has taught middle school mathematics in the Chicago Public Schools since 2005, with a few years as a Senior Mathematics Coach at the University of Illinois at Chicago mixed in. She is a founding member of the Chicago Math Teachers' Circle and lives in the city with her husband, Billy, and their dog, Groot. She enjoys the energy problem solving evokes in both students and adults and is interested in how people learn. Make sure to check out her blog, 53 Degree Shift, and follow her on Twitter

Next Episode

Bringing Kindness, Excellence, and Curiosity into the Classroom: An Exit Interview with 40-Year Math Teacher Brenda Lynch

In this unique episode, we're hearing from a 40-year classroom teacher veteran, Brenda Lynch. Brenda shares her stories with us, how the education landscape has changed over time and gives some great advice for new teachers who are just beginning their careers.
Episode Highlights:

Building relationships with students is key to classroom success
There is always something new for teachers to learn, don't be afraid of technology!
Bringing students' curiosity to the math classroom
Stay current on information coming out, join teacher organizations to network and stay in the loop
The best thing you can do going into this new school year is be kind and patient with your school leaders, other teachers, parents, and students.
Brand new teachers should "interview" school administrators to ensure a good fit with leadership style and teaching philosophy
If you don't like children, you shouldn't be a teacher. Find a new career you can be passionate about

We hope you enjoy this discussion and are encouraged to continue using Get More Math in your classroom or interested to learn more about how you can start using Get More Math.
Great news! Our show was selected as one of the top 25 Podcasts for Teachers!
Thank you for all of the support thus far. If you’d like to know more or see what it’s all about, we’d like to give you a free trial! Go to GetMoreMath.com to learn more.
About our Guest
Brenda Lynch has been a teacher for 40 years. She has a Bachelor's and Master's degree from Sam Houston State University. Her career started in Spring ISD as a home economics teacher, transitioned to a driver education teacher for ESC 6 in Huntsville, and then to become a mathematics teacher in Spring, Willis, Conroe, and Montgomery ISDs.
She served 3 years as the Secondary Math Specialist for Region 6 Education Service Center before relocating to New Caney ISD as their Secondary Math Instructional Specialist. She has also served as an adjunct professor for Lone Star College periodically over the last 20 years. Brenda has spent her entire career sharing her joy of learning with students and teachers and looking forward to the new phase in her life...retirement!