The Adventure Continues ...

Our adventures in blogging continue....

Watch for 3 new blogs going live September 6, 2006 ...

• Pre-Cal 30S (Fall '06) (Grade 11)
• Pre-Cal 40S (Fall '06) (Grade 12)
• AP Calculus AB 2006-07 (Grade 12)

the last bob

It has been a rollercoaster this semester from trig identities to logs. This math class was special and unique. t he only grade 12 precal class to blog =)... it sounds corny, but has made us all famous lol. good wishes to the grade twelves moving onto universit ;) . Hopefully everyone i knew i S3 for this precal class will take calculus.

HAVE AN AWESOME SUMMER GUYS AND GIRLS !!

i don't know why but i will always remember this math class just as a math class. Maybe because it represents that its the last math class for highschool. The learning experience was much more different compared to recent years. THIS math class was fu n and made you want to learn more =), i sure wanted to learn more.

So Long ...

We had our graduation exercises today. A gentle push into the world for all of you. I hope you're leaving with the keys to your future in your hand.

I'm so glad we've had this time together,

Just to have a laugh or learn some math,

Seems we've just got started and before you know it,

Comes the time we have to say, "So Long!"

So long everybody! Watch this space in the fall for pointers to new blogs for each of my classes.

Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen, Adieu, and all those good bye things. ;-)

Student Survey Results

We did a little survey in class the day we recorded our podcapsule. The results are below; 18 students participated. So, without any further ado, here are the results of our class' survey. Please share your thoughts by commenting (anonymously if you wish) below .....

Classroom Environment
The questions in this section were ranked using this 5 point scale:

Strongly Disagree	Disagree	Neutral	Agree	Strongly Agree
1	2	3	4	5

The bold numbers after each item are the average ratings given by the entire class.

1. The teacher was enthusiastic about teaching the course. 4.89

2. The teacher made students feel welcome in seeking help in/outside of class. 4.65

3. My interest in math has increased because of this course. 3.76
(This question answered by 17 students.)

4. Students were encouraged to ask questions and were given meaningful answers. 4.56

5. The teacher enhanced the class through the use of humour. 4.50

6. Course materials were well understood and explained clearly by the teacher. 4.22

7. Graded materials fairly represented student understanding and effort. 4.17

8. The teacher showed a genuine interest in individual students. 4.22

9. I have learned something that I consider valuable. 4.33

10. The teacher normally came to class well prepared. 4.83

Overall Impression of the Course
The questions in this section were ranked using this 5 point scale:

Very Poor	Poor	Average	Good	Very Good
1	2	3	4	5

1. Compared with other high school courses I have taken, I would say this course was: 4.33

2. Compared with other high school teachers I have had, I would say this teacher is: 4.78

3. As an overall rating, I would say this teacher is: 4.78

Course Characteristics
The questions in this section were ranked using this 5 point scale:

Very Easy	Easy	Average	Difficult	Very Difficult
1	2	3	4	5

1. Course difficulty, compared to other high school courses: 3.72

2. Course workload, compared to other high school courses: 3.67

3. Hours per week required outside of class:

0 to 2	2 to 3	3 to 5	5 to 7	over 7
17%	17%	22%	28%	17%

4. Expected grade in the course:

F	D	C	B	A
0%	29%	47%	18%	6%

Specific Feedback
What was your best learning experience in this course?

Learning to learn Learning real life applications (2) "Learning is a conversation." Circular Functions Combinatorics Logs and Exponents Transformations Learning new formulas Conic Sections

People helping each other Math dictionary (4) Scribes Blogs (2) Learning was fun and exciting Probability Group work (7) Learning cool things

Stories Wiki Assignment None (2) Everything Fun classes Learning grading methods Pre-tests Bubble tea Help provided by teacher

What was your worst learning experience in this course?

Probability (2) Conic Sections Sequences Identities Learning that I didn't study for tests Transformations

Logs and Exponents (2) Quizzes Online quizzes (5) Finding links for del.icio.us box Not understanding lesson (2) BOB (Blogging On Blogging)

Long lectures None (2) Combinatorics (2) Falling asleep in class Bubble tea Wiki Assignment

What changes would you suggest to improve the way this course is taught?

None (4) More pre-test review Be more approachable Make a wiki notebook, edited yearly Collect homework Course was well taught (2) More group work (3) More bonus questions on tests

Give "Aim for I Rule! not I can get by" speech "Person to person learning" "Steady level of work" Have 2 blogs; one for scribes, one for BOBs Correct tests quicker Go through every test More assignments

Blog OK, but wiki and del.icio.us too much Keep doing what you're doing No online quizzes Put del.icio.us button on blog Homework only every second day

It's interesting to compare the items that were considered both the worst and best learning experiences. Also, take a look at the list of worst learning experiences compared to suggestions for next year. Help me do a better job next year by commenting on what you see here ....

Message in a Podcast: Our Podcapsule

The students in our class wrote their final exam on Thursday June 15; they ended their high school mathematics careers. We made a podcast to celebrate! We left ourselves a "podcapsule" instead of a "time capsule." We left our future selves a message; hopefully it will help us improve our learning.

Here is our Podcapsule (8 minutes, 52 seconds). Please leave any questions, concerns, complaints, compliments, confusions, uncertainties, anxieties or other inquiries in the comments to this post.

You can also leave us an audio message if you wish. ;-) (You'll need a microphone.)

This isn't our last post yet -- I've got at least two more I want to get out before the end.

One of the LAST posts of this year

Well its the morning of the exam, and its kind of late, but hope you all had a good nights rest and eat breakfast! Your mind needs the energy to think efficiently so good luck out there as we aim for the HIGH HIGH HIGH SUCCESS LEVEL! Remember what we said guys and girls? 80-100 no exception. Lets prove that we're capable to do what we were aiming for.

Scribe guY

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