Group Presentation : Week 1-Malaysian Primary Mathematics Curriculumk & its Implications

Sorry for the delayed upload and blog of our group presentation...

You can download here...=D

We were the first group and were in fact very nervous as to how to present the contents...

Nevertheless, we really gained a lot through discussions with group members as we explore the Malaysian Primary Mathematics Curriculum as well as when we presented the topic.

Well, we had learnt the curriculum thoroughly when we were still in IPG IPIK. So, it would be boring if we were to touch on the aim, objectives and content organisation just as they are...

So, we decided to compare our curriculum with Singapore.

You may be wondering why Singapore???
Our curriculum is good enough...

Well..., we believe that it is important to learn from one another to promote continuous learning (improvement) and not remaining static and contented with current achievements. We cannot deny the fact that Singapore's maths is highly credited and acknowledged by countries all around the world...

So, through this presentation, we hope to be able to highlight some of the positives and limitations of the curriculum of both countries.

One of the very proud aspects of the teaching and learning of Mathematics in Malaysia is that we really integrate and apply moral values within the curriculum which we find really lacking in many other curriculum. Furthermore, our own developed curriculum really suits the pupils in our country as the educators and writers are all well versed with the situation of our country.

Therefore, through this presentation we hope to

create awareness within the future teachers to be more well versed with the curriculum our country

and be ...

a better Mathematics teacher who is able to humble oneself and learn from others to improve...

Some of the highlights of our presentation....
Some articles...for further readings...

Mathematics Achievement among Malaysian Students

What the United States Can Learn From Singapore's World-Class Mathematics System

Some videos...for your information...

So, these are some of the highlights of our presentation...

Nevertheless, our maths curriculum is the best, developed, for the teaching and learning of our schools and we are proud of the continuous effort made by all parties to ensure the continuous improvements within the subject maths!

Malaysia Boleh!!

Kids out there! Be ready to get enchanted by MATHS!

Have you ever wonder why Maths is so difficult and dull? Well, you got that wrong!

Here are some cool amazing sites that you will definitely love visiting!

Cool math at Coolmath.com

Cool math 4 kids @ coolmath4kids.com

http://www.amathsdictionaryforkids.com/


http://www.mathcats.com/

We felt that these links are extremely beneficial for you kids and also teachers. These pages are very educative and informative, with loads of Mathematical terms and problem solving ideas. Not only that, it is colourful and fun as well. So kids and teachers out there, do explore Maths to the max ya!You will be surprised...to see the wonders of Maths!

CAN EDUCATIONAL COMPUTER GAMES HELP EDUCATORS LEARN ABOUT THE PSYCHOLOGY OF LEARNING MATHEMATICS IN CHILDREN?

Hi readers!

We agree that educational computer games can help greatly in assisting educators to know more about the psychology of learning Mathematics in children.

Based on the article, we deem that they are abundant advantages of using computer games in learning Mathematics. We believe that games play a fundamental role in children’s daily lives. The authors of this article have done researches and observation on the use of games in primary children and we deem that the findings have really enlightened us and brought us to ponder upon the advantages of using GAMES in the Mathematics classroom.

We believe that games can help greatly in stimulating and motivating pupils to learn Mathematics. Motivation play an integral part in children’s learning. Pupils like game, therefore, when they are allowed to learn through hands on activities and games, it will indirectly drive them to learn. Besides that, many games are designed to cater to the needs of the learners, they are colourful, illustrative, challenging and often come with catchy music. Therefore, children will definitely find this learning atmosphere enjoyable and pleasant.

Besides that, we also agree with the findings which stated that games present a sense of success and accomplishment. This even works for slow-paced students. Computer games often come with different levels, therefore, with that, pupils can select the level of the games based on their ability.

The advantages of using games in a mathematical programme have been summarised in an article by Davies (1995) who researched the literature available at the time.

• Meaningful situations – for the application of mathematical skills are created by games
• Motivation – children freely choose to participate and enjoy playing
• Positive attitude – Games provide opportunities for building self-concept and developing positive attitudes towards mathematics, through reducing the fear of failure and error;
• Increased learning – in comparison to more formal activities, greater learning can occur through games due to the increased interaction between children, opportunities to test intuitive ideas and problem solving strategies
• Different levels – Games can allow children to operate at different levels of thinking and to learn from each other. In a group of children playing a game, one child might be encountering a concept for the first time, another may be developing his/her understanding of the concept, a third consolidating previously learned concepts
• Assessment – children’s thinking often becomes apparent through the actions and decisions they make during a game, so the teacher has the opportunity to carry out diagnosis and assessment of learning in a non-threatening situation
• Home and school – Games provide ‘hands-on’ interactive tasks for both school and home
• Independence – Children can work independently of the teacher. The rules of the game and the children’s motivation usually keep them on task.
• Few language barriers - an additional benefit becomes evident when children from non-english-speaking backgrounds are involved. The basic structures of some games are common to many cultures, and the procedures of simple games can be quickly learned through observation. Children who are reluctant to participate in other mathematical activities because of language barriers will often join in a game, and so gain access to the mathematical learning as well as engage in structured social interaction.

These tips come from Alridge & Badham (1993):

• Make sure the game matches the mathematical objective
• Use games for specific purposes, not just time-fillers
• Keep the number of players from two to four, so that turns come around quickly
• The game should have enough of an element of chance so that it allows weaker students to feel that they a chance of winning
• Keep the game completion time short
• Use five or six ‘basic’ game structures so the children become familiar with the rules – vary the mathematics rather than the rules
• Send an established game home with a child for homework
• Invite children to create their own board games or variations of known games.

So, we greatly believe that computer games can really help in the pupils learning in mathematics!

(Maths and Fun!)

Greetings and Welcome!

Hello! Welcome to our new blog...

We are Group One or you can call us "Enchanted Maths"! There are 5 of us in this group for our course, PMEY 3103. Through this blog, we hope to be able to share what we have learnt throughout the 14 weeks and how we can make the Malaysian pupils be enchanted by mathematics!

We would want to show the "fun" side of mathematics to the pupils!

So, before we proceed allow us to introduce the members of varied races or "muhibah" group...

Our first member,...leader and the only male in the group is

1. Mohd Loqman b. Hashim

Assalamualaikum and good day.I am from Bandar Baharu Kedah.I am TESL student who will be a future teacher, teaching English in a primary school. Of course that my minor subject for this course is Maths and this blog is our group blog about the wonderful good of Maths. I hope from this blog 'Enchanted Maths' our group can discuss whatever happen in Maths education, teachings, techniques and so on about Maths. And this will be very exciting. >.<

2. Our next member is Azalina Farah Auziz

Assalamualaikum and hye everybody!! I'm Azalina Farah binti Auziz.. Just call me FARAH.. I'm from Sik, Kedah. Like my other groupmates, I am a future teacher.. A primary school teacher! Through this blog, I hope I can share my knowledge with all of you.. And hopefully you will read all our posts and leave comments so that we can share our thoughts, learn from each other. I teach you and you teach me!! I hope I can be a good and the best teacher in the future...
"There'll always be a room for improvement.."

3. The third member is Caryn Ting.

I’m Caryn Ting. Currently an undergraduate in University Malaya. I’m from Sitiawan, Perak, which is about 4 hours drive from Kuala Lumpur. I am the eldest of 4 in the family. I am a TESL (Primary). This translates that I will be a primary school teacher in another 1 and a half years (time flies so quickly, it has already been 5 and a half years)…and I will also be teaching Mathematics. So, this “Enchanted Maths” blog will be where I share the next 14 weeks of my and our learning of how to teach Mathematics in fun and interesting way for the pupils!

So, do drop by and comment and share your thoughts!

4. Our next member is...the cutie...Ng Bee Guat.

Hello, my name is Ng Bee Guat. You can call me Bee Guat. I’m from Malacca, a small town situated at the south part of east Malaysia. Same like Caryn, I’m also a future primary school teacher. Hmmm, I’m not sure whether I’m qualified to be a good English or Mathematics teacher, however, I hope I can be one after I’ve completed my studies. Well, this blog will serve as a channel for me to learn, express, share, and gain useful experiences on how to teach Mathematics in an effective and interesting way. I would like to share a quote from S. Gudder, which I think truly reflects what Mathematics is all about:

“The essence of mathematics is not to make simple things complicated, but to make complicated things simple“.

5. Our last member is the sweet girl ...J.Priyatharisini

Hi everyone! I am Priyatharisini Jeyabalan.I am from Banting,Selangor.Basically, i am just a simple and sweet girl, a future teacher who loves expecting the unexpected and....is very passionate about teaching.English and Maths will be my teaching subjects in school in future. Well, i hope that this blog ( Get Enchanted By Maths) will offer a plethora of ideas to learn, enrich and explore the wonders of Maths that have enchanted generations of great thinkers.Besides, i also believe that the true mysteries of Maths lie at the limits of our thinking which is INFINITY!Thereby, as a future teacher i hope to guide my pupils to look beyond discovering the wonders and exploring the many marvel of Maths at the extremes along with fun and joy.So, deep inside i wish to make Maths a popular subject and NOT one to dread or avoid!TQ

So, through this blog we hope to be able to journey together and get enchanted by Maths!