Interactive Technology to Foster Creativity in Future Mathematics Teachers

Abstract

This chapter discusses ways in which the use of interactive technology in a problem-based course that integrates mathematics, science, and technology fosters creativity among future secondary mathematics teachers in their first year in college. The course was built on research-based principles to learn mathematics for understanding. We found that creativity is fostered naturally by teaching mathematics based on those principles. Creativity is fostered, promoted and developed when (a) learners themselves grapple with concepts and make concepts explicit; (b) learners actively build new understanding on previous knowledge; (c) learners engage with mathematics as a social process; (d) learners use multiple representations and connections to enhance their understanding; (e) learners pose and solve problems; and (f) learners exercise multiple modes of learning-when they read, talk, write, draw, analyze, apply, present, and reflect. We discuss the use of technology and issues related to future teachers' creativity as they solve problems; design experiments and collect, represent, and analyze data; develop mathematical models for phenomena in the physical, biological, and social sciences; and build and program their own robot.