Mathlets

Welcome


This self-paced short course by Professor Haynes R. Miller, Ph.D. focuses on the use of technology in mathematics education at the university level. The course begins with an introduction and then explores the MIT Mathlets collection by providing examples of Mathlet use in three different contexts.

  • Module 1: Mathlets in Lecture
    This module contains two examples of the use of the MIT Mathlets in lecture. The first illustrates the artistic and dynamic character of the Mathlets. The second and more interactive example shows how formulas can be brought to life using the Mathlets in lecture. Each segment is followed by questions, my remarks about the lecture fragments and the features of the Mathlets, and examples that illuminate their use. At the end there are a couple of exercises.
  • Module 2: Mathlets in Group Work
    The first segment of this module contains an example of the use of a Mathlet to organize group work by students in a lecture setting. The second provides several samples of what you can ask groups of students to do using the Mathlets, inside or outside a classroom. Each segment is followed by questions, and my remarks about the lecture fragments and the features of the Mathlets, and examples that demonstrate their use. At the end there are a couple of exercises.
  • Module 3: Mathlets in Homework
    The segments of this module consists of sample homework assignments created around one or another of the MIT Mathlets. They are followed by questions, and my remarks about the features of the Mathlets, and examples that illuminate their use. At the end there are a couple of exercises.

Each presentation of the use of Mathlets in the different contexts is followed by the instructor’s thoughts, experiences, and recommendations regarding the use of Mathlets within that context. To give the participant practice at integrating the Mathlet technology into his or her own teaching this course includes questions, exercises to be used in your own course, as well as activities at the end of each module. The short course ends with a wrap up, and takes another look at the resources available at the Mathlets website, and a listing of the Virtues of the Mathlets that have been illustrated along the way.


These materials are Copyright © 2013, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and unless otherwise specified are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported license.