Philosophy
At MathOnline.ca, our philosophy is that every student can become masters of the progressive concepts we find in mathematics. We believe that everyone can master any concept in math given the right tools, the right instruction, and the right amount of time. This is why we have developed the Mastery Math Method, which creates the following situation:
1. Having Mastery of the prerequisites
Math is a progressive subject. This is one of the greatest obstacles for students trying to learn new concepts. If a student doesn't have the necessary skills to complete an intermediate step in a problem, frustration occurs. We can't solve a linear system by elimination if we first don't understand the concept of lowest common multiples.
This is why at MathOnline.ca, we don't just provide the current subject's material, but all of the material available from prerequisite topics as well, so that students can build skills that might not be up to par leading into their current study.
2. Mastering concepts before "moving on"
In the same spirit as point number 1, to avoid future problems of missing skill sets, students are encouraged to master concepts before taking tests, or moving on to other more progressively difficult subjects.
The philosophy of MathOnline.ca is that students should be given the opportunity to redo assignments as often as need be to demonstrate their understanding before being subjected to testing. We provide materials and resources to students and educators to facilitate this goal.
3. Allowing the time needed for Mastery
The process of attaining mastery of concepts before moving on is one that takes a different amount of time for each individual. In traditional methods, students are given the same time period as everyone else in a classroom or group to master a concept. This causes two unwanted situations:
- Students master the concept quickly, but are forced to do busywork that just causes frustration and boredom.
- Students need more time than what is provided to master the concept, but are forced to move on and go on to other concepts with missing skills.
At MathOnline.ca our goal is to provide an approach that makes it possible to make performance the constant, and time the variable, as opposed to the opposite, as described in Disruptive Class. (http://www.claytonchristensen.com/books.html) This is why we have created the methods and tools that facilitate different paces for different students.
4. Providing the tools for Mastery
All of these ideas are wasted if we don't have the means and methods to help students gain mastery. This is why we provide students and educators with state of the art, animation based video lessons. This allows students to visually see transformations take place, and equations rearranged, as opposed to just imagining it. Math needs to be interacted with, so our lessons and learning objects invoke responses from the learner, so that they are engaged in the learning process.
Educators are provided with detailed answer keys that are correlated to learning objectives, and instructional material. They are given the tools to pinpoint areas of student weakness and need, so that they can direct instruction, and areas of student strengths so that they can provide encouragement.
Test banks are provided to educators so that honesty and integrity of students is maintained. When students "get it", then math becomes enjoyable. The number one answer to the question, "Why don't you like math?" is, "Because I don't get it". At MathOnline.ca, our goal is to create a learning revolution, where every student has the means to acquire the skills needed to master mathematics. The thrill of solving a problem can be a reality for every student, and our philosophy at MathOnline.ca is that math doesn't have to be a four letter word. Start mastering your math today!