Project Reflection
During Coordinating Seminar, a requirement for my mathematics major, I was required to create a hands-on activity for use in a math class and to walk viewers through the solution to my favorite math problem by offering hints. Though I do not plan to pursue a teaching career, I found that completing these two assignments was very helpful. Creating both the activity and the step-by-step math problem solution forced me to review mathematical concepts that I am not currently studying. In my future profession, I may likewise need to research formulas and other ideas to solve a specific problem. Additionally, developing these two projects was an exercise in creativity, in presenting my work and myself in an impressive, memorable way, key skills for graduate school applications and job interviews. Another benefit of presenting the hands-on activity was the opportunity to practice my articulation and communication of mathematical explanations; if I am asked to present conclusions about drug trial results, for instance, to my peers, superiors, or the public, I will be grateful that I have presentation experience.
More specifically, my particular hands-on activity allowed me to explore a link between two math concepts that I have never before connected, (see description of hands-on activity below). I believe that a career in biostatistics will require me to formulate such connections between seemingly unrelated ideas as I apply math to biology. For instance, I may use graph theory to describe the structures of RNA molecules as tree graphs. Similarly, creating the hints for my favorite problem solution reminded me that I should approach any problem by breaking it down; relevant information should be identified and viewed as simplified symbols so that a generic formula can be applied to it. These projects showed me that I must remain open-minded because I can always learn, even from assignments that do not, at first, seem applicable to my goals.
More specifically, my particular hands-on activity allowed me to explore a link between two math concepts that I have never before connected, (see description of hands-on activity below). I believe that a career in biostatistics will require me to formulate such connections between seemingly unrelated ideas as I apply math to biology. For instance, I may use graph theory to describe the structures of RNA molecules as tree graphs. Similarly, creating the hints for my favorite problem solution reminded me that I should approach any problem by breaking it down; relevant information should be identified and viewed as simplified symbols so that a generic formula can be applied to it. These projects showed me that I must remain open-minded because I can always learn, even from assignments that do not, at first, seem applicable to my goals.
Computer Animation: Linking Matrices and Geometric Transformations My hands-on activity explores a link between matrices and geometric transformations. Students will create matrices from the points that make up a figure drawn on the coordinate axis. They will then perform matrix multiplication, and plot the points in the product matrix. Finally, students will describe the geometric transformation that would change the figure in the same way as the matrix multiplication. Educators can create interest in and even excitement about this activity by explaining that the matrix multiplication technique is used in modern computer animation to create students' favorite characters in cartoon shows and movies. This activity is recommended for the upper high school and college levels because matrices are typically only introduced to Honors high school students or to college math majors. However, the PowerPoint available below provides modifications that turn this activity into a adolescent project, an exercise in plotting points on the coordinate axis and identifying transformations. The PowerPoint also gives teacher and student instructions for the activity and explanations of the answers to the questions on the blank student worksheet provided in the second link.
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matrices_and_transformations_presentation.pdf | |
File Size: | 1537 kb |
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matrices_and_transformations_worksheet.pdf | |
File Size: | 334 kb |
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