Virtual Manipulatives & Online Collaboration

1. Virtual Manipulatives & Online Collaboration with the free math software GeoGebra Markus Hohenwarter Florida Atlantic Universitymarkus@geogebra.org

2. NSF MSP FAU-Broward • NSF Math & Science PartnershipFlorida Atlantic University & Broward County Schools (2004 - 2009)PIs: Heinz-Otto Peitgen, Richard Voss • Master’s program for Middle School Mathematics Teachers at FAU • Focus on Math Content Knowledge & Technology Integration into Teaching

3. Outline • Virtual Manipulatives • What are Virtual Manipulatives? • What we Know • What‘s Missing • Online Collaboration with GeoGebra • GeoGebra – free dynamic math software • GeoGebraWiki – reusable & changeable VMs • International GeoGebra Institute

4. What areVirtual Manipulatives?

5. What are Manipulatives? • Physical objects used to promote learning e.g. tangram, base ten blocks • Well-established as being valuable education tools for mathematics(Sowell 1989)

6. What are Virtual Manipulatives? “… an interactive, web-based visual representation of a dynamic object that presents opportunities for constructing mathematical knowledge” (Moyer, Bolyard, & Spikell 2002) • Web-based • Manipulable Synonyms: Math Applets, Mathlets, Widgets, Gizmos

7. Student Activity “Mathematics is not, as has been said, a spectator sport. Too much of current instruction fails to actively involve students.” (National Library of Virtual Manipulatives)

8. Example: Multiplying Fractions • Animation (Cyberlearning.org) • Web-based • NOT manipulable • Virtual Manipulative(GeoGebra) • Web-based • Manipulable

9. Examples: Virtual Manipulatives Slope-Intercept Form Angles in a Clock

10. Collections of K-12 VMs • National Library of Virtual Manipulatives • NCTM Illuminations • MERLOT Mathematics Portal • Project Interactive • MathTools • GeoGebraWiki

11. Virtual LearningWhat we Know

12. Which medium is best? “What we have learned from all the media comparison research is that it’s not the medium, but rather the instructional methods that cause learning. When the instructional methods remain essentially the same, so does the learning, no matter how the instruction is delivered.” (Clark & Mayer 2007: e-Learning and the Science of Instruction)

13. Web-Based Virtual Learning “Student achievement in courses using email and web-based virtual learning is slightly better than in courses using traditional instruction.” (Meriti 2006: Technology in Schools: What research says)

14. Technology in Schools “Overall, across all uses in all content areas technology does provide a small, but significant, increase in learning when implemented with fidelity.” (Meriti 2006: Technology in Schools: What research says)

15. Virtual ManipulativesWhat we Know

16. Logistic Benefits of VMs • Easily accessible and manageable • Low technological learning curve • Available out-of-school • Many people can develop them • Can do things that are not possible with physical manipulatives or pencil and paper (Young 2006)

17. Example: Reflection at Line

18. Teaching Benefits of VMs • Instantaneous, corrective feedback • Various representations at the same time • Help students to understand abstract concepts • Lead to more complex, richer understanding • Promote problem solving and the ability to test hypotheses • Helpful for students with disabilities • Increase attention and motivation (also in teachers) (Young 2006, CITEd 2007)

19. Teachers are important “The mere use of manipulatives does not guarantee that students understand concepts and procedures and be able to connect these concepts to abstract symbols without teachers making these connections explicit.” (Reimer & Moyer 2005)

20. Virtual ManipulativesWhat‘s Missing?

21. What’s missing for VM? • Professional Development: Support for teachers on how to find and use them • Reusable and Changeable VMs:Teachers should be able to adapt VMs to their specific needs • Research: More classroom studies, especially in high schools

22. Outline • Virtual Manipulatives • What are Virtual Manipulatives? • What we Know • What‘s Missing • Online Collaboration • GeoGebra – free dynamic math software • GeoGebraWiki – collaborative VMs • International GeoGebra Institute

23. Online Collaborationwith the free math software GeoGebra

24. What is GeoGebra? Dynamic MathematicsSoftware For Learning and Teachingin Schools Geometry, Algebra and Calculus Open Sourcewww.geogebra.org

25. GeoGebra = Geometry + Algebra Algebra Window Geometry & Graphics Window

26. Educational Principles • Student Activity • Multiple Representations • Experimental and Guided Discovery Learning

30. GeoGebra Virtual Manipulatives • Every GeoGebra figure can be exported as a web-page (html) • So calledDynamic Worksheet

31. Open Source & Online Collaboration

32. Why Open Source? • Available free of charge in Schools and at Home • Online Collaboration • International Community • User Forum – Users help Users • GeoGebraWiki – Pool of Shared Materials • Expandable by using other Open Source Libraries

33. World Wide User Community 35 languages 190 countries 300,000 visitors per month

34. GeoGebra User Forum www.geogebra.org/forum

35. GeoGebraWiki – Free Materials www.geogebra.org/wiki

36. International GeoGebra Institute (IGI) • IGI Activities • Offers free GeoGebra training for teachers • Issues GeoGebra certification • Nurtures a community of researchers • IGI supports you to • Establish an IGI site at your university • Join projects and collaborate with researchers • Write grant proposals • Participate in IGI conferences www.geogebra.org/IGI

37. What’s missing for VMs? Reusable and Changeable Virtual Manipulatives →Dynamic GeoGebra Worksheets, GeoGebraWiki Professional Development →MSP projects, IGI workshops Research → MSP collaboration, IGI

38. References 1/2 • CITEd Research Center (2007). Learning Mathematics with Virtual Manipulatives. Retrieved Dec 2007 from http://www.cited.org/index.aspx?page_id=151 • Clark, R. C., & Mayer, R. E. (2007).  E-learning and the science of instruction (2nd ed). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.  • Hohenwarter, M., & Preiner, J. (2007). Dynamic mathematics with GeoGebra. Journal of Online Mathematics and its Applications. ID 1448, vol. 7, March 2007 • Hohenwarter, M., & Preiner, J. (2007). Creating mathlets with open source tools. Journal of Online Mathematics and its Applications. ID 1574, vol. 7, August 2007 • Hohenwarter, M., & Lavicza, Z. (2007). Mathematics teacher development with ICT: towards an International GeoGebra Institute. Proceedings of the British Society for Research into Learning Mathematics. 27(3):49-54. University of Northampton, UK

39. References 2/2 • Metiri Group (2006): Technology in Schools: What research says. Retrieved Dec 2007 from http://www.cisco.com/web/strategy/docs/education/TechnologyinSchoolsReport.pdf • Moyer, P.S., Bolyard, J.J. & Spikell, M.A. (2002). What Are Virtual Manipulatives? Teaching Children Mathematics. 8(6), 372-377. • Reimer, K., & Moyer, P.S. (2005). Third-Graders Learn About Fractions Using Virtual Manipulatives: A Classroom Study. Journal of Computers in Mathematics and Science Teaching. 42(1), 5-25. • Sowell, E. J. (1989). Effects of Manipulative Materials in Mathematics Education. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education. 20(5) pp. 498-505. • Young, D. (2006). Virtual Manipulatives in Math Education. Retrieved Dec 2007 from http://plaza.ufl.edu/youngdj/talks/vms.htm

40. The instructional practices and assessments discussed or shown in these presentations are not intended as an endorsement by the U.S. Department of Education.