Section1.2Example SJ Math Activities for the First Day
Subsection1.2.1Introductory Questions
Here are some examples of questions I’ve asked my students, almost always in a think-pair-share format, to start off a semester-long course on quantitative reasoning for social justice.
What do you think of when you think of social justice? What are 2-3 issues of SJ you’re passionate about? Can we develop a working definition of SJ as a class?
Answer.
Some possible answers:
justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. (Google Dictionary)
A broad term for action intended to create genuine equality, fairness and respect among peoples. (University of Massachusetts Lowell Department of Multicultural Affairs)
Checkpoint1.2.2.A first-day activity for a pandemic.
(a)
What are some social justice issues that are important to you in the midst of rising inequality and authoritarianism, climate crisis, racial justice movements, and more?
What are some ways to, as accurately as possible, measure how severe the COVID-19 outbreak is in your city? Write down any assumptions you make about what "severe" means.
If you were a disability rights activist concerned about the dangers of COVID-19 for immunocompromised folks, which of these ways would you choose to measure? Estimate or find the info.
What are some things it would be ideal to be able to measure in order to curtail or prevent the spread of COVID-19 in your city? Do the same as above: how would you measure these things as a disability rights activist? As a college administrator?
Brainstorm some ways to obtain the measurements you described above. If you obtained these measurements, how could you use them to advocate for positive change?
Get in groups of size 3–4. Group members should introduce themselves - name, pronouns, hobbies outside school, goals for the semester/year, reason they’re taking the course. For each of the questions that follow, I will ask you to:
Each time I’ve run the activity, the responses are slightly different. The responses to the first two questions are usually what you would expect. Question 3 always generates great discussions. The idea of "productive failure" naturally arises when discussing question 4 and I provide them with this language sometime while discussing this question. Listening to the students’ responses to question 4 is awesome. It’s really nice to get the students establishing the necessary culture of the class without me having to tell them what to do.
After we are done discussing the 5 questions, I elaborate on the importance of productive failure and inform that I will often tag things in class with the hashtag #pf in an attempt to emphasize its value. I also provide them with the following quote from Mike Starbird: "Any creative endeavor is built on the ash heap of failure." I wrap up the activity by conveying some claims I make about education and stating some of my goals as a teacher.
An education must prepare a student to ask and explore questions in contexts that do not yet exist. That is, we need individuals capable of tackling problems they have never encountered and to ask questions no one has yet thought of.
See e.g. Hauk, S., Speer, N. M., Kung, D., Tsay, J.-J., and Hsu, E. (Eds.) (2013). Video cases for college mathematics instructor professional development, currently accessible (as of 3-29-2022) at this link.
before
Subsubsection1.2.2.1Ground rules
Given the nature of this course, it’s important that we develop class norms to promote an atmosphere which will facilitate the learning process as well as respect the experiences of different groups in the classroom and the larger society. The class can agree to revise them and add others, but all students must commit themselves to the final set of rules by the end of the first class. These principles will guide our class discussions and interactions.
(TPS) What does respect look like for you? How might ideas of respect vary with cultural context? How might you firmly challenge the views of someone else in a respectful manner?
What are the differences betweeen a personal attack and a challenge to an idea that makes an individual feel uncomfortable? What are some situations that might blur the lines between the two? How can we acknowledge when certain beliefs (e.g. trans people not existing) are inherently personal attacks?
Group roles: In order to facilitate group interaction, you will take on group roles designed to mimic the role of mathematical and/or sociological researchers. The roles are as follows:
The facilitator is responsible for making sure every student is able to contribute and be heard. Contributions may include asking good questions, rephrasing someone else’s idea, coming up with a way of connecting mathematics to the real world, and many others.
the resource manager is responsible for obtaining and keeping track of all necessary resources to solve a problem. Resources may include writing utensils, paper, the Internet, your instructor, data sources, and most importantly, your team.
Assign roles to each group by first letters of first name; they’ll rotate every day of class. Anyone can answer questions posed to the whole class, but if your group came up with an idea that hasn’t been shared yet, it someone in your group’s responsibility to share your answer so that everyone can learn from you!
