JaeWeb

drawings

August 18th, 2008

I have always been of the opinion that math cannot be taught without a blackboard. Or a whiteboard - it’s not the color I’m talking about. But slides or powerpoints etc. just do not really do the job. Students can see the results of your descriptions, but not the action - you need to see math happening to get it, usually. And you also need to be able to answer questions that come up.

My statistics teaching takes place in a computer lab, since I combine lectures and tutorials in one. In the lab, there is a projector for the PC, but only one tiny whiteboard, stuck in the corner of the room. Of no use, really. So I’m searching for solutions.

Last night I watched a - for absolute nerds like me very interesting - lecture by Donald Knuth on “platology” (you can find it on iTunes U, which is a brilliant facility anyway). In the lecture, he has a camera on his paper in front of him, so he just writes with pen on paper and gets it projected on a screen. That’s pretty nice. But it of course requires technology not currently in the computer lab.

So now I wonder whether a site I stumbled on just now, Dabbleboard, is the solution. It seems like a very nice tool to use the normal projector to draw things and explain. It helps with the issue of not being able to draw straight lines with a mouse. It bags for a proper digital pen, though. In any case, I think it is a cool site, and it also allows for collaboration, so it makes discussions easier when you’re trying to discuss mathematical things on MSN or Skype.

Other suggestions are definitely welcome (just email me, as comments on the blog have been disabled). I found the page through DemoGirl.com, which is quite interesting as well.

Entry Filed under: statistics, university