Steven Strogatz and DAoM in "The Atlantic" magazine
Dear colleagues, friends, and supporters:
You may enjoy reading an article in The Atlantic about Steven Strogatz' experiences with teaching mathematics for liberal arts using "Discovering the Art of Mathematics" materials.
The Atlantic, Oct 6 2014:Teaching Math to People Who Think They Hate It by Jessica Lahey
Jessica Lahey also provides further interesting details in her blog post entitled Remainders: The Rest of My Interview with Steven Strogatz.
Talking about his students' engagement in grappling with straight-cut origami investigations, Steven Strogatz is quoted as saying:
"They were having a true mathematical moment. That is, they were deeply engaged with a puzzle that made sense to them, and they were enjoying the struggle. They were feeling what anyone who loves math feels, the pleasure of thinking, the pleasure of wrestling with a problem that fascinates. I told the students to think about the scalene triangle over the weekend and to try it in their dorm room. Over the weekend I started to get emails from some of them, expressing the excitement they felt when they solved it."
Steven Strogatz
Please find the straight-cut origami materials in Chapter 3 of our Art & Sculpture book.
Jessica Lahey, the author of the article, summarizes our vision as follows:
Strogatz and Fleron both envision a classroom in which math is taught as a both an intellectual discipline and a creative endeavor—where math is made, not just discussed. “As with any game, or playing music, or making a piece of art, it’s doing the real thing that’s inspiring. My students are actually making mathematics—in many cases, for the first time in their lives. And they’re loving it."
Jessica Lahey
On Twitter, Steven Strogatz' uses the following handle to share his experiences about exploring DAoM: #old_dog#new_tricks#excited
Thank you, Steve, for being willing to give DAoM a try, and for reporting on your students' experiences!
Julian Fleron, Phil Hotchkiss, Volker Ecke, & Christine von Renesse.