Center for Mathematics, Science and Computer Education

118 Frelinghuysen Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854

732.445.4850 ● (fax)732.445.3477 ● http://cmsce.rutgers.edu

The Center for Mathematics, Science and Computer Education at Rutgers University, Valiant Technology and AlphaSmart has formed a collaboration to gain a preliminary understanding of the use of MathAmigo in the classroom. This program is a "pilot study", one designed to inform future research on the use of MathAmigo in the classrooms at various levels. As such, we are looking at various aspects of the program in the classroom.

First, we asked all students to complete a Pre and Post test, assessing their pre-existing attitudes towards mathematics, learning, computers and handheld computing devices. This is important, as we wanted to have a sense for how the students view their abilities going into the project(ie: if they already viewed themselves as very capable overall, then we would be less likely to conclude that any huge improvements would be due solely to the use of Math Amigo in the classroom).

We also are looking at the progression of student's attitudes in the Math Amigo classrooms over the course of the year to identify any changes in their patterns of thought. This could be potentially interesting, as we may find that at the 3 month mark, students seem to "get it", and their attitudes shift dramatically as a result.

Finally, we are assessing the attitudes of the teachers towards the use of the software in the classroom. This is also important, as we want to see how much of an impact the attitudes of the teachers toward technology and Math Amigo in specific might shape the direction of learning in the classroom. We suspect that there are significant differences between our classroom teachers, and we want to have a sense for exactly where these differences lie.

To date, three of the four observed classes seem to be using MathAmigo fairly successfully in their classrooms. The third grade teacher was well prepared in her introduction of MathAmigo to her students and had posters throughout the room to which the students could refer. After one week, the teacher reported the students were so familiar using MathAmigo that the posters were no longer needed. Each time we observed her students, they were engaged with MathAmigo and especially enjoyed seeing the completion screen showing their scores and time. The teacher remains enthusiastic about using MathAmigo in her classroom.

The fourth grade students have been equally engaged when using MathAmigo. The fourth grade teacher likes MathAmigo, but admits that he is not using the program to its fullest potential due to time constraints. He reported that his students were able to comprehend and learn place values concepts by using MathAmigo and received a better understanding from using the program than by his teaching.

One of the two eighth grade teachers tries to use MathAmigo often. The other teacher has not integrated MathAmigo into her teaching at all. Both teachers are eager to use the eighth grade activities that are forthcoming. The eighth grade students talk about math when using MathAmigo; they compare their processes and scores.  

Regardless of age, when the students use MathAmigo, they remain on task and if they talk, they talk about math.

The AlphaSmart Dana has proven to be a reliable device for use in the classroom. We have no reported problems using the device and both teachers and students have expressed enthusiasm for the Dana as a tool for learning.