Mathematics Enhancement Tools

Carolyn Seeley, Math Department Chair

• $6,962 — Purchase 50 graphing calculators, 60 scientific calculators, and 300 individual white boards to be used in all levels of math classes.
• All math students (most of the students at SME) will benefit from this equipment. The equipment should last several years, multiplying the numbers of students impacted.
• Longer, but fewer, class periods under the new block scheduling system necessitate keeping students actively involved with instruction with a minimum of down-time. Calculators will ensure that whether or not students have appropriate calculators (and remember to bring them!), they will not be hindered from learning key math concepts.

The graphing calculators will be used primarily in Geometry and Algebra classes, where students are not required to have graphing calculators. The scientific calculators will be used in lower level classes, where it is more common that students either do not own a calculator at all or forget to bring it.

Individual white boards will allow teachers at every level to get immediate feedback on students’ abilities to produce correct solutions to problems. The boards will also provide variety in keeping students involved with a hands-on activity.The calculators and boards will be kept in the classrooms. Students who check out the brightly colored calculators for classroom use will return them to a slot in a storage container at the end of class.

Grant awarded April 2008