Running head: MATHEMATICS AND THE WORLD: RESEARCH PROPOSAL 1

MATHEMATICS AND THE WORLD: RESEARCH PROPOSAL

Prepared for
Dr. Habib Siam
Course Instructor
McGill University
Montreal, Quebec

Prepared by
Jennifer Dumont
Masters of Art in Teaching and Learning
McGill University
Montreal, Quebec

August 22, 2016

MATHEMATICS AND THE WORLD: RESEARCH PROPOSAL 2

There is a disconnect between what mathematics is and where it can be found in the world.

Mathematics can be found all around us and it is important as educators to illustrate that with in-depth

examples and connections. I developed a love for math early on in my life, yet it took me two and a

half years to muster the courage to pursue it as a degree in university. I could not commit to my dream

because I was afraid. I was afraid because no one had ever shown me what mathematics was beyond

this abstract concept that could be applied to different fields; no teacher ever went into specifics about

the connections. No one ever told me what I could do with math, I was only told that I was good at it. I

want to connect theory and practical applications, which are of interest to students, to make

mathematics more meaningful than merely numbers and equations.

I am researching this topic because not only is it important to teach a subject clearly and in-

depth, but it is also important to frequently state the significance of the topic and how it is used or seen

outside of the classroom by people everyday. From my experience, there is often a disconnect between

what a topic is and what it is actually used for outside of the classroom. This is especially evident in

mathematics. My research is beneficial to my field of study because making these connections has the

potential to improve student learning and increase student interest. Connections can be defined as a

relationship or link between mathematics and an object in the world. Improvement, with respect to

student learning, can be defined as the increased ability to understand a concept and relate with it. Most

importantly, my research can serve as a guide for teachers on how to incorporate many different

interests of students into an improved lesson plan. This guide will be an extensive repertoire of

mathematical concepts, for all levels of secondary school, with diverse and in-depth examples to

connect the concepts to the potential interests of the students. This could be made available to all

teachers in the field in Quebec.

In this study I will examine the relationship between secondary mathematics and the world. I

will be looking at pre-existing research on this topic and build upon it by investigating what other
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connections can be made. I will be examining the entire secondary education mathematics curriculum,

categorizing each component of the curriculum into content-specific areas: algebra, arithmetic,

geometry, probability, and statistics. Furthermore, I will be examining topics in these areas while also

looking at where mathematics can be found in the world and making connections between the two.

My research question is Where can secondary mathematics be found in the world and how can

these connections be incorporated into the classroom?. Recommended further research for this topic is

What are the impacts on student learning and interest when providing more connections between

secondary mathematics and the world?.

I want my research to to develop as a large, continually evolving repertoire of examples that are

tied to concepts that can be made available to all Quebec teachers. I want it to contain a diverse mix of

examples such that any teacher could tailor the content to their class. They can use the repertoire to pull

relevant examples for every topic to engage that set of students.

My methodology for collecting data will be looking at the Quebec mathematics curriculum in

terms of particular topics in each level (secondary 1 through 5): arithmetic, algebra, geometry,

probability, and statistics. I will examine the mathematical competencies required at each level and I

will group each into categories under the particular topic it corresponds to. Furthermore, for every topic

in every particular year, I will find main concepts and link them to particular examples. I will also

collect data from various sources, online articles, websites, and books, that discuss mathematical

concept in the world. I will explore the involvement of mathematics in various fields and extrapolate

these ideas. The fields that I will examine are of interest or could be of interest to students such as

video games, card games, sports, nature, or art. Finally, I will make connections between the Quebec

mathematics curriculum and where mathematics can be found in the world. Furthermore, I will

incorporate these examples into lesson plans.

I will look for very specific examples that can be tied in with the QEP (Quebec Education
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Program) mathematics curriculum. I do not want to find broad examples such as math is found in

nature or sequences are found in nature. I want specific examples such as the Fibonacci sequence is

found nature because the number of petals of most flowers are one of the Fibonacci numbers. More

specifically, daisies, like other flowers, can have 13, 21, 34, 55 or 89 petals; all of which are Fibonacci

numbers. It is examples like these that are specific and tie into a particular part of the curriculum

(sequences and series) that can be incorporated into a classroom. The examples will not only state

where mathematics appears but also how.

To analyze the data, I will create connections between the examples I found and the topics of

the curriculum. I will examine what topic each real-world example relates to and draw that link

between the two by classifying that example by a particular mathematical concept. I will then group all

of the examples for particular topics into groups. Each example will be tied to a specific topic which

then I will integrate into lesson plans. I will analyze how many examples I have for each interest, how

many I have for each topic, and how effective they are at conveying the topic. I will further research

any gaps that are found in interests, topics, or effectiveness.

One implication of my research for my practice is that I will be able to improve my ability to

convey content to students in a way that is meaningful to their lives. Concepts will be illustrated in a

way, or multiple ways, that can allow students to better understand them and their purpose. My goal as

an educator is to not only teach the concepts of mathematics but also to teach the reason and

significance of mathematics; my research will provide me with a tool to do this.

The potential to improve students' experience with mathematics is an implication of my

research for students. They can have their interests directly tied into the material and lesson plans on a

regular basis; ideally every day. Mathematics is a subject that students commonly struggle with. My

research will provide a way to add relevance and clarity to these difficult topics and provide students

with a sense of purpose in what they are doing. A survey or discussion could be conducted on the first
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day or first few days of class to learn the interests of the students. Not only would this serve as a

bonding activity, it would tailor the examples to that particular class.

The implications of my research for other teachers is that it can serve as a guide for math

teachers on how to incorporate many different interests of students into an improved lesson plan. This

is extremely useful for mathematics teachers from other concentrations who may not be as comfortable

with the subject. Also, it would serve as a resource to make lesson planning and incorporating real-

world examples easy.

An anticipated problem with my research is that there is not always an example available for

every topic and that other material may be required to understand the connection. Examining the entire

Quebec secondary mathematics curriculum may be too large in scope. Moreover, the scope of my

research poses a challenge to my time frame. Deciding what interests to focus on is another

complication that may arise during the research. I would like to continually update this research but

finding a starting point that is broad enough for a diverse mix of students, while avoiding being too

broad, will be difficult. Another concern is the existence of Mathalicious which is a website that

produces this exact research in terms of the American Common Core Standards for mathematics. There

are over 130 examples and projects created by this company which could potentially cover most of the

areas I want to cover (Mathalicious, 2016). It does not render my research redundant because it does

not directly relate to the Quebec Education Program mathematics curriculum. There are always more

examples and different ways that these examples can be tied into the curriculum. I will fill in the gaps

and tailor the research to the Quebec curriculum.

In conclusion, making connections between mathematics and the world can better illustrate an

otherwise abstract and difficult concept to students. Not only is this research beneficial for students but

it is also a valuable guide for other teachers. My research will make mathematics relevant and engaging

for students and bring life to an otherwise abstract topic.

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Annotated Bibliography

Illuminations. (2016). Retrieved from http://illuminations.nctm.org/Default.aspx

Illuminations is a section on the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics website that

contains lessons for all grades in mathematics. Some of the lessons use key examples of

mathematics in the world such as forest fires, orbits, and automobile mileage. These examples

will be used as inspiration and as a guide for current research in the area. The site provides a

detailed lesson plan with objectives for each of the examples.

IXL. (2016). Retrieved from https://ca.ixl.com/standards/quebec/math

IXL is a resource that breaks down the concepts of the Quebec Education Program into grade

level competencies. The site breaks down the skills learned in each level and mathematical

concept into categories. It also provides examples for each of the skills. This site will also

provide a detailed breakdown of material that is to be learned by students in the mathematics

curriculum. IXL also provides concepts for discrete and financial mathematics which can be

focused on for the different streams in cycle two of the mathematics curriculum outlined in the

Quebec Education Program resource.

Mathalicious. (2016). Retrieved from http://www.mathalicious.com/lessons

Mathalicious is a website that illustrates secondary school math concepts in terms of the

Common Core Standards with real-world lessons. It is an American-based company.

Mathalicious is a paid for resource for teachers with over 130 real-world lessons and projects
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that can be brought into the classroom. It provides detail on how to plan, teach, and reflect on

the lesson. Similar to PUMAS, I will be building upon this idea specifically for the Quebec

Education Program.

Progression of Learning in Secondary School Mathematics. (2016). Retrieved from

http://www1.education.gouv.qc.ca/progressionSecondaire/pdf/progrApprSec_Mathematique_en

.pdf

The Progression of Learning (POL) in Secondary Mathematics document states the topics

learned in each year of secondary mathematics in Quebec. The document states when

knowledge of a certain concept should be constructed, applied, and revisited in each secondary

year. This source will be used to distinguish the concepts for every year in secondary school and

break knowledge up into specific categories.

PUMAS Examples. (2016). Retrieved from https://pumas.gsfc.nasa.gov/examples/index.php?

order_by=grade

PUMAS (Practical Uses of Math and Science) is an online journal created by NASA with

examples of where mathematics and science concepts taught in elementary and secondary

school can be found in the world. It is a resource for teachers to incorporate practical uses of

math and science. The website currently has 88 examples in various subject areas. PUMAS

makes the connections between particular concepts in mathematics with a specific example that

illustrates the concept. I want to use this as a guide of examples that are currently used, the

mathematical topics that are covered, and how I can expand upon these ideas specifically
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relating to the Quebec Education Program.

Qubec Education Program. (2016). Retrieved from

http://www1.education.gouv.qc.ca/sections/programmeFormation/index_en.asp

The Quebec Education Program site provides a detailed breakdown of the specific mathematical

topics divided into particular concepts and processes for the Quebec mathematics curriculum. It

outlines the required material for both cycle one and two in mathematics. It also highlights the

different streams of mathematics that are available to students. I will be using this source to

categorize the mathematical concepts that will be related to an example.

We Use Math. (2013). Retrieved from http://weusemath.org/

We Use Math provides details of careers that are related to mathematics. The site breaks down

the required education and mathematics for the careers. Moreover, it states how mathematics is

used in the career, potential employers, and facts about the career path. We Use Math is a useful

source because it illuminates a wide variety of careers that use mathematics and concepts that

are used in these careers. I will utilize We Use Math to create examples of mathematics being

found in the world.