Posted by Joe | Filed under Technology, Portfolio
I recently gave a little presentation called "Ten Spreadsheet Tricks for College Teachers" at UNC that has some cool techniques for buidling gradeboooks in college classes. You can find out how to calculate weighted averages and letter grades from raw scores, drop lowest scores, color cells based on how well a student is doing, make histograms, etc.
CHECK OUT THE TRICKS
LiveGraphics3D is a neat java-based technology for making dynamic models of mathematical structures. For example, the hyperbolic and elliptic points on the torus (shown separately below) can be classified using differential geometry. By Clicking and Dragging, you can get them to spin. Hold down Shift and Drag to Zoom.
If you're a true math geek, check out LiveGraphics3D by Martin Kraus.
Using Flash for Mathematical ModelingStarting with a summer project to learn Adobe Flash and ActionScript with Nathan Wakefield, I've really gotten into using Flash in my classes and creating dynamic applets using Actionscript coding.
I use Mathematica a lot, but teaching math courses with Mathematica has been a real challenge. I think the cost of the program and having to learn the syntax has been a barrier to students appreciating Mathematica, so I've taught mostly with graphing calculators. I'm really excited about the new Wolfram Alpha search engine, though, and I've been using it to introduce my Calculus II students to Mathematica.
You can have anything in the world you want if you'll just help enough other people get what they want.
- Zig Ziglar
Examples
Besides this site and my course sites, I also help out with a few other web projects. You can check out some of my handiwork below.
I am a doctoral candidate at the University of Northern Colorado. My wife, Melissa, and I moved to Colorado so she could start a career as a teacher and I could earn a degree in Educational Mathematics. I am actively interested in educational technology and psychology, andI like research and web design, but my real professional passion is teaching. Learn more...
