Toh, Tin Lam

Mathematics has always been a difficult subject for many students. Consequently, many students fear the subject and refuse to engage in this subject. There are many educational theories which attempt to address students’ motivational and cognitive issues in learning mathematics. In this lecture, I attempt to propose an alternative approach of teaching mathematics through the use of comics based on my experience of infusing comics into the teaching of mathematics for the low progress learners. I further present a framework of infusing comics for mathematics instructions, and take reference from not only educational theories but also from the perspective of communication theory. In designing lessons using comics, I make reference to how the various elements of the communication model are taken into consideration in the design process. I illustrate the application of this framework with the use of exemplars, making reference from both primary and secondary levels. With the advent of Generative Artificial Intelligence, what appears to be a rather expensive process of developing comics package could potentially become relatively inexpensive, so that educators and designers could invest more time in conceptualizing the content of the comics package. Thus, the theoretical framework for the design process deserves greater attention to researchers and educators.

This paper discusses the changes in classroom instructions due to technology over the years in mathematics education, and how these changes have impacted mathematics learning and teaching. The impact on learning can be seen over a few phases in Singapore: The use of scientific and graphing calculators has allowed the focus on the developing of higher order thinking skills, while at the same time de-emphasizing the routine computation. With the introduction of various computer softwares such as spreadsheets, mathematics teaching and learning has moved towards the next level of emphasis on coding and computational thinking. Technology can and has been harnassed by teachers to enhance student learning. These will be discussed in details in the talk, with particular reference to the Singapore education context.

This paper presents a case study of an experienced and competent mathematics teacher’s classroom instructional practice in a Normal Technical Mathematics course. The topic that was observed was Volume and Surface Area of a Pyramid, a subtopic within the mensuration topic in Secondary Two syllabus. The teacher used a video clip on the Egyptian Pyramids to integrate students’ prior knowledge on pyramids, which raised their attention on the topic. This was followed by engaging the students in hands-on activity to understand the formulae.

This paper presents a snapshot of Singapore’s journey towards excellence in mathematics education by examining the role of the traditional notion of mathematics competition and other competitive activities. It could be seen using the context of mathematics competition that the notion of “excellence” has evolved over time. Excellence as a high standard for individuals to achieve or as a set of obstacles for individuals to pit against the norm has been gradually broadened to include excellence as an internal goal for an individual to achieve, and even excellence as a goal for the mathematics education landscape.