The UNL Department of Mathematics is a national leader with respect to offering opportunities for professional growth for math teachers. For the Spring 2021 semester, the department is offering three online courses that have been designed with teachers and the work they do teaching mathematics in mind, including one new course: Math 896: History of Mathematics.
Registration is now open! The spring semester starts Monday, January 25, 2021. If you have taken a course in the past year at UNL, use the instructions here for how to enroll in MyRED: http://registrar.unl.edu/registration-procedures. If it has been longer than three semesters, please email Lindsay Augustyn at laugustyn2@unl.edu for further instructions.
Over the past 15 years, more than 450 math teachers have earned their master’s degree, making UNL a true leader with respect to providing opportunities for mathematics teachers.
#1 - Math 896, section 701: History of Mathematics for Teachers **NEW**
Class Number for Registration: 20671
Instructor: Dr. Michelle Homp, UNL
This course will study mathematical topics and their development over time. The purpose is to convey that mathematical concepts, as we know and teach them, did not suddenly spring to life, but are the culmination of smaller discoveries and inventions that sometimes required centuries to assemble. This process of creating and discovering new mathematics happens every day.
#2 - Math 804T, section 700: Experimentation, Conjecture & Reasoning
Class Number for Registration: 19658
Instructor: TBA
Math 804T focuses on problem solving, reasoning, proof, and communicating mathematics. The overall goal is to bring you to the next level in the development of your mathematical habits of mind. A person who is an effective mathematical thinker has a toolbox of skills and knowledge to use to reason, conjecture, prove, and solve problems. Although a complete mathematical toolbox includes algorithms, a person with well-developed habits of mind knows both why algorithms work and under what circumstances an algorithm will be most effective. Mathematical habits of mind are also marked by care of calculation and estimation as well as persistence in pursuing solutions to problems. A person with well-developed habits of mind has a disposition to analyze all situations as well as the self-efficacy to believe that he or she can make progress toward a solution. Such a person also engages in metacognition by monitoring and reflecting on the processes of reasoning, conjecture, proving, and problem solving.
#3 - Math 812T, section 700: Geometry for Geometry for Teachers
Class Number for Registration: 19659
Instructor: Dr. Christine Kelley, UNL
The main goal of the course is to strengthen your mathematical background for teaching Geometry. We will focus on fundamental concepts of Euclidean geometry, and use explorations to contrast them with non-Euclidean geometries (including spherical and hyperbolic geometries). We will make extensive use of simple, concrete materials and dynamic geometry software. The main goals of the course are to strengthen your mathematical background for teaching Geometry. We will focus on fundamental concepts of Euclidean geometry, with explorations of non-Euclidean geometry for contrast. We will make extensive use of manipulatives and the dynamic geometry software GeoGebra.
Let us know if you have any questions by emailing laugustyn2@unl.edu.