Reflection to Robinson’s Article

After reading Robinson’s article, it made me reestablish the importance of being a flexible teacher. In particular, I liked how Robinson had assessed herself on her teaching and made changes to it. Her “changes included lecturing less, providing opportunities for higher-level student thinking, and developing classrooms norms to support student-student dialogue.” I agree with Robinson that using the Think-pair-share was a valuable tool that generated rich discussion among students and provided an opportunity for students to engage in mathematical learning. I also liked how she changed the format of her exam questions by focusing more on critical thinking, reasoning and communication skills. This gives students the opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge in math and not just on how well they can remember the procedures for solving a specific type of math question.
With all the changes geared toward helping the students to learn better, I question and doubt the value of lecturing less in class. I think restricting lecture time “to a maximum of 60 minutes per week” can be hurtful for the students in that they will not get enough instructional time to develop a good understanding in harder topics. However, I must applaud Robinson’s efforts for trying out new ways to facilitate learning in her students and for her efforts to become a better teacher.