Eddie Woo and the joy of teaching Mathematics

In this much-anticipated episode, host, Leanne McMahon sits down with world-famous maths educator Eddie Woo to try to harness his enthusiasm to inspire us all to be the best maths teacher we can. We discuss what inspires Eddie, how he moved from feeling ‘on the outside’ to where he is today and what he has learned along the way (and from whom). We touch on the perceived dichotomy between direct instruction and learning through problem solving and mention other pedagogies that may have been set up as dichotomous, but that all contribute to the rich tapestry of Maths teaching. Finally, we look at the importance of mentoring for all teachers and where Eddie would go for professional learning.

Please pass on some of the maths love by rating and sharing our podcast and check out some of the back catalogue of other brilliant guests and topics the MathsTalk podcast has covered.

Resources:

Eddie’s website and links to TV shows and books:

A profile of Eddie: https://careers.amsi.org.au/eddie/

The NSW Mathematics Growth team: https://education.nsw.gov.au/about-us/strategies-and-reports/nsw-mathematics-strategy/initiatives/10-mathematics-growth-team

Teacher social networks:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/249795726_District_Policy_and_Teachers%27_Social_Networks

Dan Meyer – Fake world math: https://blog.mrmeyer.com/2015/fake-world-math-when-mathematical-modeling-goes-wrong-and-how-to-get-it-right/

Logarithmic graphs and Covid-19: https://www.socialsciencespace.com/2020/06/people-do-not-understand-logarithmic-graphs-used-to-visualize-covid-19/

Direct Instruction or Inquiry-Based Learning?: https://www.edutopia.org/article/direct-instruction-inquiry-based-learning/

Eddie Woo and the joy of teaching Mathematics

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