I think it is a good idea to allow them to work in groups in order to solve some IB exams. This will allow the students to share their ideas, learn different approaches to answer the questions of the exam. Also, I think it is very useful because sometimes students can explain topics in a way that the rest of the group can understand easily.

I would give them a fixed amount of time to solve some problems. I would walk around the class helping them if they would need it . Also, I would check the results of the groups to be sure that they are understanding and answering properly the tasks.

After that, I would ask them to choose a leader in the group to put forward the explanations regarding how to solve the topics. This will improve their communication skills.

 

Thinking skills (Toronto)

In this video, they were asking them to work in groups to solve a problem using all the previous knowledge from the subject (Biology)

I would use these ideas in maths to help them to improve their thinking skills instead of me explaining how to solve some parts of the problem.

One example, could be using problems with different questions to check that they understood the key concepts of the subject and that they can solve what could be a real life problem.

I would design a problem of a neighbourhood that will need to build a building. This question could have questions about the area and volume of the building taking into account windows, doors etc.

Also, it would be good to include some statistics about the amount of car park and lanes for the road that will be needed.

Finally, I could include some optimisation questions about how to design the corridors and stairs of the building.

 

Differentiated teaching (New York City)

This video is showing how to teach TOK in class using controversial real life situations.

I would choose the topic: “How have technological advances affected the nature and practice of mathematics? Consider the use of financial packages for instance.

I would ask them to think about real life situations. I would apply some of the learning approaches that the teacher was using in the video. For example, I would start with a quiet moment to let them think and reflect and share their ideas. I would make sure all the students are contributing in their groups. I would ask them to create a poster to explain their topics and point of views. I would allow them to use laptops to find information about the topic.

Posters would allow visual learners to understand the information of the group. Some of the groups could put their posters on the wall so the kinesthesic learners can see them when they move around the room.

They would put forward the poster in order to discuss it with the rest of the class. This would help audio and linguistic learners.