I'll be the first to admit, I've always liked math. Growing up, I was what you would call a "math person.' I was very good at plugging numbers into an equation to get a right answer. Throughout this program I am continuing to learn that this is not necessarily what that is about. I'm learning about the excitement that comes with working collaboratively on a problem and then coming up with an answer in a way that means something to me. Not only do I have a better understanding of why I'm doing what I'm doing on certain problems, but I also get to share this with others and see the many different and very cool ways that others go about solving the same problem.

In terms of translating this into classroom practice, the idea of group work and collaborative problem solving seems great--in theory. It's not that I don't see the value in these types of problems or their ability to cover multiple standards at a time. In fact, it's clear that the type of learning that occurs through this type of work goes much deeper than plugging numbers into formulas and memorizing how to solve specific types of problems. It was clear both in class and from the videos that this type of teaching engages students much more than other methods I've seen. I guess what I'm wondering is how to incorporate this when working in one of many districts that adheres very strictly to a scripted math curriculum.