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51.
From Visual to Verbal, the Many Ways to Understand Mathematics
By Elizabeth Kimber – Programme Leader for Mathematics at Bishop Grosseteste University The Conversation UK recently published a piece written by Vicky Neale (people.maths.ox.ac.uk/neale) (Whitehead Lecturer at Balliol College, University of Oxford) and myself about how there are many ways to think about mathematics. From visual to verbal – there’s more than one way to understand maths was written for a general audience and aimed to address the idea that being ‘mathematical’ is about thinking in one particular way. We used the example of ellipses because while they aren’t generally covered in school mathematics, they are all around us and are amenable to being looked at in various ways that may be familiar from school maths. Encouraging students to think in different ways about mathematics is a big part of how we teach at BGU and we are not alone in this. At A level, many students have been encouraged to work algebraically and geometrically to get a fuller sense of functions and graphs, perhaps supported by dynamic geometry software. However, many students have developed a preferred approach to their school mathematics and expect to continue working only in this way during their undergraduate studies. If they do this, then they’ll be missing out on powerful ways of thinking. We need to build up students’ confidence in thinking in different ways and extend it undergraduate mathematics. A big part of mathematics is about making sense of definitions and theorems. For example, what it means for a sequence of numbers to converge. These results can be expressed very formally using words and mathematical notation, and the pressures of assessment make it tempting to move quickly into helping students write in this formal style before the underlying ideas have taken shape. However, our workshop-style teaching sessions give students the opportunity to explore these underlying ideas. This might involve working visually or numerically, perhaps using technology, but the most crucial aspect is the opportunity for students to discuss their thinking with each other. I’m struck by how much students use gestures to describe their mathematical ideas to each other, often before they are ready to commit these ideas to paper. The gestures and discussion help to reveal students’ different ways of thinking and provokes others to ask questions and refine their ideas. This frequently flags up related issues that I couldn’t possibly cover in a lecture. We do also spend time writing up solutions to problems to help develop students’ mathematical writing style, but we don’t rush into this at the expense of grappling with the underlying ideas. “The way in which our lessons are styled as a workshop rather than a lecture has been extremely helpful in allowing me to gain an understanding of the course content. The informal style of the workshop allows me to feel much more comfortable when discussing a topic that I am not confident in.” 1st Year student “Since studying at BGU my confidence in and passion for mathematics has increased. The small group teaching creates the optimum environment for discussion – students no longer simply accept the maths but question what we are learning, to understand how and why the maths works. This has helped me to understand the maths in greater depth, compared to studying A-level.” 1st Year student Working on this piece with Vicky was an interesting exercise in itself, but it also prompted me to reflect on my teaching at BGU and the great advantage of our long workshop-style teaching sessions. You can find the full article on The Conversation. For more information on our Mathematics courses, visit our website or get in touch with our Enquiries Team who will be more than happy to help you. -
52.
BGU offer new professional qualification for aspiring youth workers
Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU) is pleased to be able to offer students the opportunity to work towards Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) professional accreditation on its new Childhood and Youth (Youth Work Pathway) course option. -
53.
BGU’s Top Tips for a Successful Clearing Experience
With results day on the horizon, one of the main things on the minds of students will be the Clearing Process. If you end up going through Clearing don’t worry because at BGU we aim to prepare our students for every eventuality; even before they join us! -
54.
Mentoring changes mindset of young people in Lincolnshire
Fifty years 10 and year 12 students across 10 Lincolnshire secondary schools took part in an online mentoring scheme this year organised by LiNCHigher in partnership with Brightside mentoring. -
55.
Working Together to Find the Missing MFL Links
By James Foster I am currently doing a PGCE in Secondary Modern Foreign Languages (MFL) at BGU and as part of my British Council ITT Scholarship I was invited to the House of Commons to attend an All Party Parliamentary Meeting on MFL. The meeting was chaired by Tonia Antoniazzi MP and involved speakers from Cardiff University and leaders of Welsh university/school collaborative initiatives, the practitioners delivering them and students benefiting from them. Present also were representatives from Routes into Languages Cymru, the MFL Student Mentoring Project and a variety of UK universities. Part of the meeting’s aim was to talk about the MFL Student Mentoring Project in Wales which is a 5-year long project with the aim of increasing GCSE uptake in MFL. One shocking statistic presented at the meeting was that last year only 64 pupils in the whole of Wales took German A-level, reflecting the current state of MFL in the rest of the United Kingdom. Another interesting topic later in the meeting came from a representative from Anglia Ruskin University who is currently promoting the theme of linguistics as a GCSE topic, something which I personally would be very interested in seeing. Could this be one of the missing links in the struggle to promote MFL as a subject? In my opinion MFL has many cross-curricular links and linguistics would provide a link with the sciences, however for me the decline in foreign exchange visits poses a bigger threat. Exchange visits offer pupils the opportunity to apply what they are learning and see the relevance but in the past few years these have declined The meeting finished with open questioning by anyone present at the meeting and after being adjourned was followed by a networking session in the Committee Room. Thank you to the British Council for inviting me to go as part of their ITT scholarship and to BGU for letting me have the day off placement to go! If you are interested in a career that offers you the opportunity to shape future generations then our wide range of PGCE courses are for you. With over 150 years’ experience in training and crafting expert educators there is nowhere better than BGU. For more information visit our website or contact our Enquiries Team. Are you a current or former BGU student? Have you done something you think should be shouted about? Then contact our PR Team to share your achievements. -
56.
BGU Ambassadors Discuss International Business during Embassy Visit
Staff and students from the Business (Team Entrepreneurship) course at Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU) were invited to visit the Finnish and Hungarian Embassies in London to discuss opportunities to promote international business initiatives. Chris Jackson, Senior Lecturer and Team Coach on the TE programme, received an invitation from the Finnish Embassy via the regional Honorary Finnish Consul, Camilla Carlbom-Flinn, who is keen to promote the ongoing relationships that BGU’s Business and Enterprise team have built with Finnish organisations. Chris was joined on the visit by his academic colleague Pete Tasi along with students Daria Pipczyenka and Chris Sandham. The main topic of discussion was promoting the forthcoming Team 4 Learning (T4L) event that will be hosted at BGU next February. T4L is an international event that brings together students, team coaches and alumni connected with the Team Academy (Tiimiakatemia) programme (which forms the basis of BGU’s TE course). For next year’s event the team at BGU are planning to broaden the scope to include organisations who are now using Team Academy methods in their everyday business practice. The BGU visitors were received at the Embassy by Special Advisor Minttu Taajamo, who also invited colleagues from the Anglo-Finnish Chamber of Commerce and Business Finland. For Chris the trip offered an exciting opportunity to see representatives from BGU involved at the heart of international cooperation: “Daria and Chris did a first class job as ambassadors for BGU, and represented us well at the Embassy. This was an incredible learning opportunity for them. The Embassy were very supportive and we now need to continue discussions with them to see exactly what this support could look like in practice and how we might be able to collaborate further.” While in London, BGU’s ambassadors were also able to visit the Hungarian Embassy where they met with the Science and Technology attache, who was a colleague of Pete Tasi at the Budapest Business School. A Hungarian national, Pete has joined BGU for a year, to work on both the BA (Hons) Team Entrepreneurship and BA (Hons) Business courses. Pete discussed the positive impact this meeting could have on both the students involved and the wider BGU community: “We encourage our students to get out and meet prospects and build active networks, so it seemed crazy not to make the most of this opportunity and show them the potential of real networking. "We explained about the nature and scope of our work at BGU and it looks as if there are opportunities for us to collaborate further, which is pretty exciting. We already have an invitation to return and meet with some Hungarian start-ups based in the UK at an event organised by the Embassy.” If you’re interested in a future in international business or in starting your own company, our business courses are the perfect path to take. You can find more information on them on our website or by contacting our Enquiries Team. Better yet, why not attend one of our Open Days and experience BGU first hand? -
57.
BGU Collaborate on Original Play and Exhibition to Mark the 2018 Armistice
In the approach to Armistice Day 2018, BGU staff and students have been supporting the production of an important new play to mark the end of the centenary years of the First World War. -
58.
Students Experience the Positive Power of Singing
Second Year Psychology students at Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU) worked with Liz McIntosh from 'Sing it Loud' (www.singitloud.org) to experience the positive power of community singing. The practical workshop formed part of the ‘Psychology in the Arts and Communities’ module from the single honours Psychology degree course and applied the theoretical elements of the course into first-hand experience. The students were able to explore participant feedback and the experiences of groups Liz works with around Lincolnshire, discussing topics such as relieving rural isolation, loneliness, supporting carers, providing people with a routine and enabling people to withdraw from day to day worries and immerse themselves in a positive activity with others. Thomasin Nicholds, one of the Psychology lecturers at BGU, described the positive impact that these practical sessions could have on the students’ learning: “The session gave students the chance to work together in a small group on something new and outside of their usual learning experience giving them a chance to understand more about themselves and each other. "The experience was then related back to theory and research related to individual and community wellbeing, with students testing their understanding of engagement, inclusion and benefits of participation.” In the build up to the session the students also listened to a local radio interview where Liz was representing a community singing group that is made up of people with dementia and their carers, enabling them to come together and share in music, which can be a trigger for positive memories and give people something to share when their lives are radically changing due to the onset of dementia. For more information on our Psychology courses and how you can join in with the innovative research taking place at BGU visit our website, contact our Enquiries Team or attend one of our Open Days to experience the University first hand. -
59.
‘Echoes of Contempt’ within Church history explored at book launch
Last week Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU) hosted the public launch of ‘Echoes of Contempt’, the latest book from Methodist minister the Reverend Bruce Thompson. Covering centuries of religious history, ‘Echoes of Contempt’ explores Jew Hatred, especially in relationship to the Christian Church, from the time of the early Church to today. The launch, held in the BGU Chapel, opened with introductions and reflections from local Jewish and Christian leaders. These were followed by an interview with the Reverend Bruce Thompson led by BBC Radio Lincolnshire presenter Rod Whiting. Attending the event Mark Plater, Senior Lecturer in Theology at BGU, commented: "Bruce has provided valuable input on this topic to my Holocaust Education module for many years now, and it is great to see his ideas and passion now summarised in book form. “The text is a well written, but hard-hitting read, and I commend it wholeheartedly." There are lots of exciting events taking place at BGU throughout 2019. To keep up to date on what is coming up you can visit our website or to host your own special event contact our Conferencing team. -
60.
Busting the myths keeping you from your future
Teaching is one of the most rewarding careers available. Not only will you have the opportunity to make a long lasting, positive impact on the lives of your students, you’ll be able to see the results of your hard work first hand as your students learn and develop.
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