Enhancing Numeracy in a Classroom Context - Report Example

Running Head: REPORT ON TRIALED TEACHING PLAN Report on Trialed Teaching Plan Name Institution Report on Trialed Teaching Plan In this paper I explore a media report that was used to develop student’s understanding of critical numeracy. Critical numeracy is a term used to describe the human ability to understand and have confidence to work and communicate with mathematical numbers. It entails a depth of reasoning out logically and being able to distinguish between magnitudes. This is a vital subject among all age groups from young children to adults. Its importance cannot be discredited. Our everyday life demands of each one of us the application of numeracy and therefore the more one becomes appreciative of numbers, the better he is placed to handle and understand information based on numbers or statistics. A lot of data passed by the media requires an understanding of numbers to be able to analyze and appreciate the information. For example, the following media report on the world cup could be used to enhance numeracy in a classroom context. The 2010 world cup due to take place in South Africa this June will involve 32 teams representing different countries of the world. Over 100, 000 foot ball fans will have the opportunity to watch live the 64 matches including the finals. The winning team will have played 7 matches. More than Fifty percent of the population of the world will be following the matches as they unfold through the media in over 200 nations around the world. Some of the aspects of quantitative literacy that could be explored and developed through the use of this article in a classroom context include arithmetic, comparisons and statistics. Students are required to know how a team progresses to the finals and loses in a group which requires a good understanding of number progression and comparisons. The information on the number of persons watching in the stadiums and those watching through media is meant to bring out a contrast of magnitude. To implement this, a plan to have a modeled competition of the world cup was sought. This is to enable the students visualize and comprehend the concept of the world cup. These are some of the questions used to build on their understanding. 1) How many matches will the earliest team to be eliminated in the world cup have played? 2) How many matches will the team eliminated at the quarter finals have played? 3) If each team has 22 players each, how many players would have gone home by the time the semi final match is played? 4) What is the percentage of football fans watching the matches live? What is the probability that a team that has won in the quarter final will win the world cup? 5) How many matches will the winning team have played? 6) Given that each football fan watching the match live pays 100 dollars, how much is collected for the entire world cup matches? For 10 year olds and above there was an understanding of the topic under review. Those with less than 10 years of age but can highly reason with numbers are perceived to have a high IQ. The diverse ages were chosen to show the levels at which people comprehend numbers with such weight and complexity as those portrayed in this media report about the world cup. Males showed a great interest in the topic than females. The aspect of gender and numeracy was explored by this questioning. With no male being in the dark about the logics of the world cup, there were a considerable number of females with little information on the world cup. The following occupations were targeted: engineers, statisticians, media personalities, scientists, arts, cashiers and casual workers. The aspect under evaluation was to see how reasoning with numbers has influenced career choice and occupation. Though there has been some research on when particularly the ability to distinguish among numbers and quantities begins, it is evident that some models of reasoning with numbers are complex. For example there is an age group which will perceive that when water from a wide vessel is poured to a narrow vessel that the quantity has increased. Yet, another age group might be able to know that by doing so the quantity of water still remains the same. In the above media report about the world cup, children under 10 years had difficulties in decoding the nature of the arithmetic involved and reasoning. The age group with the best understanding of this report was 15 – 35 years. The questions revealed that only those with interest in football had a prior knowledge and understanding of the world cup and the logics involved for a team to precede to the next level while those with less interest when given the opportunity to acquaint themselves by looking and studying the model were also better placed to answer the questions. Questions 4 and 6 were done with no complications. Most people were comfortable and confident with these questions. On the question of gender, more males than females showed extensive knowledge and confidence in answering the questions than females. This can be attributed to the fact that males have a more tendency to love foot ball than females. But more so it has been established that at certain age’s males of the same age with females are better placed when it comes to number operations and reasoning than their counterparts and at other age’s this seems to change and females take the lead. Of the six questions, most males were able to answer them correctly. For most females, questions 4 and 6 were the best answered as they were not dependent on the logics of how the teams precede to the next level. They were dependent on multiplication. However there are females with ample efficiency in this subject and great acumen in reasoning with the numbers who demonstrated this by answering the questions asked with great precision. We cannot brush off the fact that numeracy plays a key role when it comes to career choices. Those with great acumen in numeracy or excellent quantity literacy often tend towards science, engineering and other mathematics and logic oriented disciplines. On the other hand, those with less interest in reasoning with numbers often choose disciplines that will less involve them in number and logic reasoning like arts, journalism among many. Yet the fact still remains that our daily lives will indulge us to solve problems related to numbers. For example, balancing that grocery budget at home, counting that change after shopping and affirming that it is correct or knowing how many clothes were given to the dry cleaner and how long they will take to be clean. For this particular case of the world cup, most of those in skilled occupations were much comfortable answering the questions than those in unskilled occupations. The major contributor to this phenomenon is the level of exposure each of this groups has had to working and reasoning logically with numbers. Most of the unskilled workers lack professional training which perhaps enhanced the reasoning, the ease as well as the confidence portrayed by the skilled occupants such as engineers, scientists or accountants. In conclusion and reflecting upon the trial, it is so evident to me the magnitude of the factors that directly or indirectly affect quantitative literacy such as age, gender, occupation and interest. For ages below 15 years, reasoning with numbers is greatly hampered by limited exposure. Yes it could be that quantitative literacy is inherent from birth, but given the outcome of the trial each one of us as we develop both in mind and understanding we are able to reach the highest rank of numeracy. Those with outstanding performance among these age groups can have their ability attributed to an inborn nature that excels in logic thinking. The concept of reasoning with numbers develops as we grow old (Riffe, 2005). The gender factor further proves that men and women are different in their thinking patterns with men being more logic oriented. Employers will always be looking for people with excellent demonstration of quantitative literacy and at times aptitude tests to gauge their competence in reasoning are administered before interviews. In teaching quantitative reasoning, it is quintessential to remember that no matter our gender, or the age group as it may allow, exposing the human mind and training it will enhance quantitative literacy. Every one of us however good we are in number, will need some orientation to a report about any discipline before we draw any conclusions about our abilities. This is why I chose to use a model to familiarize those not conversant with the world cup to draw conclusions from it and answer the questions. The results were equally good. If a media report or advertisement is about economics or political campaigns or statistics in higher education, it takes persons familiar with the fore mentioned subjects to take interest and comfort in the reasoning of numbers that may be required. However with proper exposure and learning one can become an expert. Great patience need to be exercised in order to bridge the gap between experts and the citizen (Lynn, 2004). References Riffe, D., Lacy S., & Fico F. (2005). Analyzing media messages: Using quantitative content analysis in research. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates publishers. Lynn, A. (2004). Achieving quantitative literacy: an urgent challenge for higher education.Pearson Education publishers. Read More