Mrvaudrey

Tag: nctm

  • NCTM 2019

    …Since brevity is the soul of wit,
    And tediousness the limbs and outward flourishes,
    I will be brief…

    Hamlet, Act II, Scene II

    About three hours ago, I arrived home from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics annual conference. For less than 48 hours, I accumulated more experiences than would be wise to replay here, so I’ll pick a few standouts.

    There are no proper nouns in this post, so if you and I hugged, shook hands, did math together, or chatted in the last couple days, then just assume I’m writing about you.

    image: tsvsu

    Within a few minutes of arriving in San Diego on Thursday night, a half-dozen friends gave me hugs and invited me to sit with them. Now, “friends” is an unusual term to use here, since we only see each other once a year or so. But this small, unruly cohort (affectionately called the Math-Twitter-Blogosphere or #MTBOS) attempts to be inclusive, inviting, and loyal all at the same time.

    So to define “a peer in the field of math education who is interested in sharing their practice, learning from other, and contributing to the field as a whole,” let’s use the term math-friend throughout here.

    Peak Moments

    Read the next two sentences together before having any feelings about them, please.

    More than once this weekend, I met a new math-friend who said, “I saw you speak before,” or “I have your book,” or “I follow you on Twitter.” Invariably, I try to turn that recognition into camaraderie, to lower the perceived podium and sit alongside these new math-friends to learn together.

    The NCTM conference is full of teachers who fill big rooms at conference centers and get lots of notifications on their phone. Whatever word you wanna use to describe that group, they are only math-friends if they uplift and encourage others from the stage.

    The type of math-friend I want to be is a curious consumer of fresh ideas, an earnest listener of shared experience, and a good hugger.

    I hugged a lot this weekend.

    image: tzvsu

    Those hugs, those fresh ideas, and those shared experiences gave me life and encouragement and the strength to dig my fingers back into my local school system like it’s fresh pizza dough, shaping and molding with renewed vigor.

    The conference was full of Peak Moments (I think that’s the term), where things felt great and I was inspired.

    Valley Moments

    For some, the conference had its share of valley moments, too.
    (That’s … probably a term I just made up.)
    A sewage pipe burst at the Hilton, so I was roused from slumber after 4 hours with the smell of untreated shit wafting through the drains in my hotel. Not my favorite way to begin a day of learning, but I rallied.

    Years ago, when I first went to college, I was brought low by the newly raised bar of academic achievement. Suddenly, everybody in my classes was capable and hard-working, and sliding through class without breaking a sweat was no longer an option for me. It was humbling.

    That’s how some of us feel at these events; some of the top math educators in the world converge on one spot and share their favorite ideas. Compared to those folk, what I did in class last week wasn’t so special.

    “I feel mediocre!”
    image: rawpixel

    You’re a Great Teacher

    If you’ll indulge a food analogy:

    Of course.

    Defining a “great” chef is a challenge.

    Cooking (like teaching) is relative, prone to interpretation, and tough to nail down. Throughout the last couple days, I had a Cuban sandwich, a breakfast buffet, and a bacon burger, all of which were “great” in their own way.

    Teachers, it’s easy to glance sideways at your fellow chefs and compare. What’s “great” for your classroom is always going to be different from your neighbor, and you can be great at dozens of things, all of which combine to make you a great teacher.

    You’re a great teacher.
    NCTM and Twitter and math-friends all combine to us more great.

    More tools, more ideas, more resources, more support, and more hugs.

    ~Matt “More Hugs” Vaudrey

    NOTE: Hilton responded really well. They got me a fresh room in the morning and 50,000 Hilton points towards a future stay.
    If I weren’t so exhausted, I would have asked for the points/dollars conversion and compared it against nightly rates.
    Instead, I just said, “Thanks,” and went to get dressed.

  • Growth and Humility

    Arrogance sits at the core of traditionalB education. The idea thatB the teacherB knows something andB the studentB needs to understand it.

    One sees this arrogance in many traditional classrooms; an authoritarian adult keeps children in an orderly array and provides tasks for them to complete. Dispensing knowledge like food from his/her vast coffers, teachers areB benevolent dictators at best and draconian Supreme Leaders at worst.

    A new teacher’s understanding of this idea is betrayed by their language, with phrases like,B “I struggle with keeping the classB under control.”

    Veteran teachers’ language shows that same ego, however: “I’m not giving you an A unless youB show me you deserve it.”

    In contrast, modern education isB [becoming] an environmentB of questioning and collaboration, where the ego of knowledge is dispersed among the students.

    Inward-facing desks is a start, but humility in a position of authority is tough to fake. The teacher must actually feel that students have value to add to learning, and that they can lead and follow each other, not just the adult in the room.

    Since humility requires practice,B I do my level best to find rooms where I ain’t the sharpest one.

    NCTM_R_LogoandName4C_L

    A month ago, I traveled halfway across the country to learn from other math teachers whoB also traveled halfway across the country; we all converged on Texas forB the largest gathering of math teachers on the continent. I watched from an enormousB crowd as speakers explained books that I had never readB and instructional strategies that I had never tried.

    I appreciate these chances to realize how big the world of education is. How exciting that there are new things to learn and new methods to try and new people to meet!

    In the face of such overwhelming ignorance, one’s ownB arrogance can’t survive; weB must replace it with humility and get to work.

    While I can certainly point to my favorite moments from the week, the general feeling of pre-enlightenment is my favorite part; not so much that I learned new things (I did), but that I learned how much more there is to learn.

    That is an exciting proposition.

    As our circle of knowledge expands, so does the circumference of darkness surrounding it. (Albert Einstein)

    ~Matt “I’ve never heard of that, can you show me?” Vaudrey

     

  • When Twitter Ain’t Enough

    three tweets, where I note that something is lost when interactions only happen online
    (click for link)

    There are dozens of math teachers that I admire from afar, many of whom converged on San Antonio this week for NCTM. I got to sit at the feet of these b my teacher-crushes b and hear firsthand what they may not share in print.

    That’s the point of conferences, right? To confer.

    Online, I get a two-dimensional view of these educators. For some, itbs a highly-curated image of their best work, best screenshots, and best writings, edited to perfection. Therebs a degree of anonymity online, where I can choose to show only the best parts of myself.

    Look at that picture to theB left. Thatbs the best picture of me that I have, so of course that’s the one I share.

    But when Ibm sitting six feet from Elham Kazemi, listening to her description of the five (six?) methods of student discourse, itbs a completely different experience than just reading her book.

    In literature, the digital persona would be called a bflatb character. Two-dimensions, no depth.

    By spending time in real life with colleagues from home and abroad, I can repaint them in my mind as broundb characters, full of life and detail and minutia that donbt come up in a tweet or blog post.

    Chris buys me a drink as soon as I arrive, then asks, bIf you could be any rockstar for a night, who would it be? Ibm asking everybody here.b
    Our new friends at the bar pitch their workshop toB Stephanie, who listens intently and offers thoughtfulB feedback.
    Ethan beams as he shows me pictures of his kids.
    Karrine b who Ibd never met b comes in for a hug: long-overdue, since she translated the Mullet Ratio into French for use in her schools in Ontario

    There are also imperfect parts to our round-ness, stuff you see from staff at your day-to-day, but not from teacher-crushes.

    Gray hair thatbs more prominent than it was when that headshot was taken.
    A foul mouth with a foot regularly placed in it.
    A laugh thatbs a little too loud for the room.

    (Some of those are me.)

    TheseB traits, the good and the fallible, are what make us real, what make us into actual people. These are people with whom I can have personal relationships based on professional interests.B An online network of math teachers is great, but shaking hands and being a smartass in person is important, too.

    See yball in Atlanta this summer.

    ~Matt bInterrupts sometimes and has a moleb Vaudrey

  • NCTM Conference 2017 – Tips

    NCTM Logo

    In 2009, I had almost completed my second year of teaching, trudging toward the CST state-wide test in a small charter school in Pomona.

    The ruthless ass-kicking that was my first year as a [terrible] teacher was replaced with the draconian rule of a plucky 24-year-old who wasnbt about to be pushed around by some teenagers.

    Note: By year four, I had found a happy medium, where I could focus the class without yelling and still enjoyed my job more than 60% of the time. That jumped to 90% once I left that school.

    I packed my bags for the enormous San Diego Convention Center and spent two-and-a-half days meandering through sessions that were over my head and gathering free pens from the exhibit hall.

    image of a pile of pens and pencils
    image: Public Domain

    bTwas a simpler time.

    Eight years later, the National Council for Teachers of Mathematics and its selection committee have selected my co-author and me to share what webve learned about classroom assessment, a topic that certainly was mentioned to me in 2009 and immediately forgotten. Forty copies of my book are riding beneath this plane as I type, and teammates b many of whom Ibve never met b will chat in an exhibit booth alongside me, attempting to evangelize new and veteran teachers to share the awesome and improving snapshots from their classrooms on Twitter.

    Did Twitter even exist in 2009? [UPDATE: Yes.]

    Regardless, I feel a calm sense of purpose and this 700-series jet barrels toward Austin1 for NCTM. My innards churn with an amalgam of excited wonder and professional urgency.

    With that sense of urgency, here are some conference tips Ibve learned from attending a bunch in the last ten years, both as an attendee and a presenter:

    Plan

    Early in my career, I attended CMC South, where I had this conversation with two of my teammates, who Ibll call Diane2 and Chiara:

    Vaudrey: Okay, webre here, webre caffeinated, webre registered. Where are you two headed for the 8:00 session?
    Diane: Oh, man. I havenbt even looked at the book yet.
    Chiara: Me, either.
    Vaudrey: Did yball see the link I sent you last week? Therebs a digital book with all the sessions, and you can filter them… want me to show you?
    Chiara: I didnbt bring my computer, Ibll just sit at one of these tables and plan out my conference.
    Diane: Ooo! I’ll join you!
    Vaudrey: …Okay. Well, Ibll be in the San Jacinto room if you canbt decide and want to join me.

    Do your homework. You can burn an hour of conference time figuring out where to go. If youbre unsure, pick a stranger and follow them; youbll likely stumble into something interesting and unexpected.

    And if that workshop ainbt your style, you can go through the schedule and plan out your next few sessions.

    Snacks

    My pastor wife once mentioned from the pulpit that she keeps granola bars in her purse, just in case her husband (me) gets hungry and cranky. She may have referred to me as ba grumbly bear who really needs a salmon,b which the youth group in the audience thought was hilarious.

    True story; I keep snacksB in the glove boxes of both our cars and myB purse, too. Especially at conferences.

    granola bars in my purse

    At most conference venues, there are a limited number of food locales for breakfast and lunch and the lines are likely to be enormous. Plus, what if I want a snack at 10:00, but really want a good seat for the 10:15 session?

    Then Clif bars are my friend and I can power through until 12:30.

    Meals

    This tip I mooched from David Theriault, an ELA teacher from Southern California. He does his homework picking outB a great place to eat, and then b rather than listen to an admired speaker give their usual 60-minutesB b he’ll take them to lunch and get some quality time with them.B Ibll quote him directly:

    Paying for someonebs lunch or dinner is the bcatch and releaseb (fishing term) of spending time with someone. Even if the conversation goes south at least they got a great free meal. Not just a free meal, a great free meal.

    …Itbs not enough that we talk as teachers and friends, itbs not enough that we eat together, we need to take the time to make our bhobbyb (teaching) something worth celebrating. Sean Ziebarth and I always joke that teaching isnbt just our job, itbs our hobby.

    In addition, dinnerB and drinks are a great time to have candid conversations with like-minded folk from outside your sphere of influence.

    Even better if theybre unlike-minded. What a great time to challenge your perspective and learn new things than to have a martini with someone who doesnbt work in your district. Or your state.

    Bonus if youbll never see them again; theybre sure to be honest with you.

    If your 8:00 session on Wednesday is free, come see John and me talk about Dessert.
    Webll be in costume.

    ~Matt band wear comfy shoesb Vaudrey.

     

    1. Yes, Austin. Even though NCTM is in San Antonio. I booked a flightB to the wrong airport andB itbs more than a little embarrassing.b)

    2. If the real Diane and Chiara read this, thanks for being pseudonyms. You b of course b were always well-prepared for literally everything, including CMC.b)