Puget Sound Council of Teachers of Mathematics

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AI in the Math Classroom: Support, Shortcuts, and Sharp Edges

AI tools are quickly becoming part of our everyday math classrooms and

home office spaces, helping us draft tasks, vary questions, give feedback,

and communicate with colleagues, admin and families. So, we’ll look at

what AI can add to our practice, where it offers time-saving subtractions,

and where the sharp edges are that deserve our attention. We’ll going to

ground the conversation in insights from over 10,000 real teacher<>AI

conversations, noticing what math educators are actually asking for, trying

out, and worrying about. And you’ll have the opportunity to query that

collection of conversations to see what teachers are typing, and with what and how the AI is responding – and from the background, a bit of the why the AI is responding that way. As a result of that exploration, we’ll discuss concrete ways AI can support those things that teachers can, should and shouldn’t do, and how we might talk with students about using AI outside (and policy depending, inside) school in ways that still support genuine mathematical thinking.

Cal Armstrong, Math Teacher, Appleby College School

Cal Armstrong is a long-time classroom teacher at Appleby College School in Oakville, Ontario. He serves on the board of the Ontario Association for Mathematics Education (OAME) and has been deeply involved in provincial math education initiatives for many years.

Cal is the principal AI researcher and developer behind OAME’s AI chatbot for math educators since 2023 and has been working hands-on with educational AI (pre-generative) since 2017, focusing on saving teachers time and improving students’ learning experiences. Earlier in his career, he co-designed what became Microsoft’s OneNote Class Notebook, widely used to support digital collaboration and assessment in schools.

His opportunity to attend the Park City Mathematics Institute for 20 years (there’s always someone who needs to repeat a grade!) taught him well to combine day-to-day classroom teaching with research in mathematics education in order to design effective, practical and pragmatic educational technologies. He now uses a close analysis of over 10,000 teacher–AI conversations, and his own classrooms’ experiences, to uncover both the promise and peril of AI in the math classroom.

Solving Mathematical Mysteries -

Much as mysteries in fiction consider evidence, find common patterns, and draw logical conclusions to solve crimes, mathematical mysteries are unlocked using the same tools. This talk exposes secrets behind a numerical magic trick, a geometric puzzle, and an unknown quantity to find a fascinating pattern with connections to art, architecture, and nature.  

BIO: 

Dr. Jenny Quinn
Dr. Jenny Quinn is dedicated to making mathematics accessible, appreciated, and humane. An award-winning teacher, author, and scholar, she earned her doctorate in mathematics from the University of Wisconsin and taught for more than 30 years at the collegiate level, primarily at Occidental College and the University of Washington Tacoma. She served as President of the Mathematical Association of America in 2021 and 2022 and now leads the Seattle Universal Math Museum as its Executive Director, where she works to spark curiosity and joy in mathematics for people of all ages. A true math enthusiast, Jenny especially delights in sharing the beauty of Fibonacci numbers and other surprising patterns that connect math to the wider world.  

Location:

St. Madeleine Sophie School,

4400 130th Pl SE, Bellevue, WA 98006

Schedule:

• 5 pm social

• 5:30 pm dinner

• 6:15 pm: announcements

• 6:30 – 7:30 pm presentation

Purposeful Fluency:

Using mathematical structure to make practice meaningful,

differentiation straightforward, and mathematics irresistible

Like any art form, mathematics requires its students practice to develop a mastery of foundational skills. Historically this practice has taken the form of drills. This is fine for some students, but many students (and adults) can trace their dislike - even their trauma! - to these drills. In this talk we'll explore what a more purposeful approach to fluency might look like. We'll see how exploiting mathematical structure can create situations where students drill and practice in the service of motivated problem solving. The benefits of this approach are numerous - we'll argue that it can make differentiation nearly automatic, the mathematics students experience richer and more authentic, and math class work better for everyone.

Dan Finkel is the Founder of mathforlove.com, a Seattle-based organization devoted to transforming how math is taught and learned. Dan is a game creator, curriculum writer, puzzle author, and speaker. His TEDx Talk - 5 Principles of Extraordinary Math Teaching - has been viewed over a million times.

Dan’s Math for Love Curriculum has been used by thousands of students, and is known for its combination of rigor and play. The math games he created with his wife, Katherine Cook, have won over 30 awards. They include Prime Climb, Tiny Polka Dot, Multiplication by Heart, and Rolly Poly.

Dan is also Cofounder of earlyfamilymath.org, which provides free, quality math resources. His new math book for kids, Pattern Breakers, was published in 2023.

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