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My 10 Takeaways From #CMCMath

11/5/2016

19 Comments

 
OK, so I went back and read through this post and have to start with a huge disclaimer: I had a phenomenal experience this weekend in Palm Springs hanging out with over 4,000 math teachers. There are so many good things happening and I am honored to be a part of the push for finding better ways to support students. It would be awesome if you'd drop a comment at the end with your thoughts.

With that said, here are my top 10 takeaways from the conference, in no particular order.

1. We need non-white & non-dude presenters

This is tough to say, especially as a white dude who loves the opportunity to get a group of educators together and share resources and pedagogical shifts with teachers from around the country. At the same time, we have been hearing (and saying) for some time that we need more girls in STE(A)M fields so they have someone "who looks like them" and will inspire more girls to join STE(A)M careers. Especially lately, we have been talking about empowering our students of color to step up and have their voice be heard.

But how about female teachers and teachers of color?

I'm not going to speak on behalf of any group, but I would love to learn from you. Nanette, Dina, and Liem had incredible Ignite talks on Friday night; it's time for your voices to be heard during a session you lead. Lynda worked alongside Andrew to share about clothesline math and how she's using it; time for you to step up and own your own session.

​Maybe you did, and I didn't end up in your session. If that's the case, my bad. I need to get better about seeking out your voice.

And for the rest of you, I need you. I need Javier Garcia to keep presenting about students and language. I need Anne to keep presenting about Social Justice. I need Lybrya to share what she is doing to support teachers and students. And I need you, whomever you are, to step up and know that your voice matters. If you're worried about submitting a session, get in touch with me and I'll help, but there needs to be an influx voices from non-whites and non-dudes. For those who are submitting to present, encourage your colleagues to do the same. 

Oh, and we need more dudes.

I'm such a hypocrite, aren't I? But here's where we have another problem: elementary teachers. Look at a conference guide and find the elementary presentations. Chances are, they're run by women. That's great, but I would also love to see a mix of how male elementary teachers are providing dynamic instruction. Graham has helped break that mold, so it's time to step up, fellas. 

Maybe a variety of presenters at these conferences would encourage a dissipation of stereotypes within our profession. On the other hand, maybe it wouldn't. If nothing else, though, a variety of presenters offers a variety of voices and, no matter what, we all win.

***UPDATE***
Since I've posted this, a few people have either DM'd me or commented here that there were sessions by educators of color, including the ones I mentioned. This is me recognizing that I need to do better, then, of seeking out those presentations in the guide ahead of time and making sure that my conference experience has more variety. That's on me, and thank you all for calling it out.

2. Desmos was nowhere

Where were all the sessions for Desmos, quite possibly the greatest free gift to math teachers?

ONLY TWO?! BUT WHY?!
Picture
When I did a search for it in the schedule, this was all that came up.

WHAT HAS THE MATH WORLD COME TO???

Have we moved on to the next big thing? Has the love fest with our beloved calculator worn out its welcome? 

Needless to say, I was stunned when I saw only two mentions of it. I even thought about presenting a Desmos session, but figured everyone else would be, so I'll leave it alone. Either we were all thinking that or...

3. Desmos was everywhere

Every single session I attended had a mention or use of Desmos. The only one that didn't was mine, and I could have easily found a place for it. No, the product's name wasn't present in the vast majority of the titles or descriptions, but it was more powerful than that. In 7 out of the 8 sessions I was in, including one where I presented, there was a ubiquity about it.

"As you know, you can jump into Desmos and create a model for this."
"If you get into Desmos and plot the points, you can set up a regression."
"Eh, I'm just going to do this in Desmos."
"If you enter in this code, it will take you to the activity we built in Desmos."
"On this slide, students dropped their data into Desmos to represent it in a table."


You get the point.

It's a pretty cool thing to see a product as powerful as this get integrated so seamlessly into sessions to where it's an assumption of knowledge. Two years ago, I had to explain what Desmos was before I could explain how we were using it to shift instruction during a session. Now it's a foregone conclusion and I love it. Speaking of knowing a product...

4. Teachers want to get pushed

At the end of day one and throughout day two, I had a simple--and typical--question for attendees I knew well and others whom I had just met:

How is your conference going?

"Well, you know, it's good... but I was hoping for more in a lot of my sessions."
"I feel like I'm looking for something to push me over that hump, and I haven't found it yet. I loved the sessions, but something was missing."
"I knew pretty much all the stuff the presenters were sharing, so I guess it's been OK."
"I came here thinking that I would get something new, but the biggest thing has been the challenge to ask less questions. I've heard that before."


I get it. Especially for folks who have been coming to CMC for years, it's tough to find a new and inspiring message to vault your teaching to another level each and every year. So, the fact that many people I talked to said that they didn't get the push that they were looking for should be seen as a failed--or stalled--conference?

Not so fast, my friend.

What I love about these statements is that teachers are coming to conferences with the high expectation that their teaching will be improved. Underneath all of this is the admission that their teaching has room for improvement. Maybe they didn't realize it, but over 4,000 teachers got a gentle nudge this weekend. Some nudges were more life-changing than others, but I have to believe that everyone will go back to their classroom with more opportunities to be a better supporter of students and learning.

Sometimes, though, a push becomes a shove, and then...

5. Teachers want to start a fight

At 8:30 on Saturday morning, I wasn't expecting a room full of teachers who were ready to Start A Math Fight. After all, that's pretty early after an evening out in Palm Springs, no matter what time it is. We talked about creating a culture in the classroom where it was safe to take a risk, then we modeled the idea of bringing a VEST to a conversation. 
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If you know where to buy either of these vests, holler at me. I'll pay you real money.
In hindsight, I should have recorded the session so that I could post it here. There were so many great insights during the session that were shared by members of the audience and it was a learning experience for everyone, especially myself.

How are we providing opportunities for our students' voices to be heard?

​How are we amplifying those voices?

As the father of two, I don't want my kids to come home and talk about math as if it was something done to them, so my goal with starting a math fight is to encourage the conversation that leads to deeper understanding and investment into the content.

I shared out a tweet that offers up ways to get more conversations stirred up in math, and it's worth nothing that they are all different ways of doing that very thing our math classes are lacking.

Conversation Starters: Math Edition

All created by #mtbos teachers.#CMCmathhttps://t.co/ocQmZw0NoO pic.twitter.com/G06z2vMGH0

— John Stevens (@Jstevens009) November 3, 2016

6. Modeling is more accessible than I thought

Avery had a session at 10:30 on Saturday that I was hoping to use as an opportunity to decompress and reset for the rest of the day. Silly me, I thought he was just going to share out some cool ideas that I could share with teachers in my district.

​Nope.

Trying to challenge myself on a visual pattern with @woutgeo.
What is the next step?
What would the 43rd look like?#CMCmath #mtbos pic.twitter.com/pxG42EyV0c

— John Stevens (@Jstevens009) November 5, 2016
He showed us a pattern, which was inspired by Fawn's work over a Visual Patterns, and we talked about it. Sure, that was good. The real fun started happening when he drew our attention over to the table where he had a bag of pennies, blocks, paper, and more. He then encouraged us to create a pattern. As a middle school and high school teacher, I could find some ways to model with manipulatives, but Avery opened my eyes to a whole different world. 

Having students grab the materials and create a visual pattern of their choice was awesome. Even better was this, though:

"I have created a culture in my class where students can pick something that is appropriately challenging to them."
- @woutgeo #cmcmath

— Classroom Chef (@classroomchef) November 5, 2016
I love that. Giving students the opportunity to choose a challenge that is right for them is exactly what I needed to hear this year. There are plenty of websites and tech tools, but a strong change agent is giving students a voice and teaching them how to use it. Thanks for that, Avery.

7. Clotheslines are for WAY more than clothes

Seriously. 

Maybe my earlier concern about Desmos is because everyone is stringing up clotheslines like it's 1849. What's the deal, folks? 

I wandered over to Dan's session about clotheslines and was immediately floored.

This is what "invert and multiply" looks like on a number line. @danluevanos @mr_stadel #CMCmath #clotheslinemath pic.twitter.com/nnG3ejnBPz

— Chris Shore (@MathProjects) November 4, 2016
Chris and Andrew have been doing some great work with clothesline math lately, but Dan absolutely crushed his session. A room full of curious teachers were constantly in awe of what we can do with such a simple tool. No tech necessary here to reach peak engagement, my friends. Check out clotheslinemath.com for more information.

I didn't go to their sessions, but Chris and Andrew each had other sessions promoting the idea and Andrew even occupied Primrose A with it. Whodathunk we would be in awe over a string and pieces of paper in 2016?

​Not me.

8. The inner circle is stupid

On Friday night, I went to dinner with 49 other educators. While at the table, another attendee of the conference (and patron of the same restaurant) came over, sat down, and said "I just wanted to feel what it was like to be in the inner circle." I have to believe that she was saying it tongue-in-cheek, but it still irked me. What constitutes the Inner Circle? Who decides that? 

Yes, our group consisted of some people who have thousands of Twitter followers and fill up Primrose A every year.
Yes, our group consisted of published authors and editors.
Yes, our group consisted of prominent bloggers.

Even with that, I refuse to believe that this woman had breached the Inner Circle.

The invitation was extended on Twitter, and a pretty great group of folks replied. The median number of Twitter followers for the group was 276. If you're using "Twitter Famous" as a metric of the Inner Circle, 276 is certainly not a qualifying number. The mean number of Twitter followers for the group were much higher, but we have a couple outliers who are both over 6'4" tall who skewed that data set.

If you want the Inner Circle to include you, make the circle big enough until you're in it. 

There have been enough posts about having a seat at the table, but my suggestion is this: if you want a seat at the table, take it. There were teachers at the table whom I had never met and was honored to share a meal and conversation with. None of us are bigger than the movement we are all working for, and please know that when attending a conference or engaging in a conversation via Twitter.

​Well, except one guy...

9. Brian Shay deserves a math monument

Have you thanks Brian Shay for the work he has done with CMC-South? If not, please do. Yes, he has a whole team of volunteers. Yes, CMC is a stable organization. But I can tell you that putting together a conference for 150 is a lot of work, and that's with no sponsors, no wifi issues to deal with, and no money to handle.

Brian always has a smile on his face, is always busy, and is always deflecting credit for the work that he has done to make CMC-South a conference with over 4,000 attendees and wifi that works more often than not. 
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As the emcee of Friday night's Ignite talks, we got a glimpse into the work he does to rally a crowd and entertain an audience, but it's so much more than that.

From a presenter's standpoint, I have never felt more appreciated.
From an attendee's standpoint, I have never felt more valued.
From an educator's standpoint, I have never felt more inspired.

​Thank you, Brian.

10. Kids make me cry

Damnit Liem, I was doing so good all day without getting emotional.

In his Ingite talk, Liem spoke about the different cries from his infant son and how those can be related to the needs of our students. It was hilarious and true all at the same time. The one about poop had me absolutely rolling because my wife and I have been there... a lot.

Changing diapers is like grading papers.. Sometimes the work is... GREAT @LiemTTran #CMCmath pic.twitter.com/ho29dwwa13

— Nate Goza (@thegozaway) November 5, 2016
Through all the laughter was a thread of compassion for kids. It was inspiring. 

One of Liem's last slides, and what I think was his call to action, was to "love them." He had a picture of his son alongside a picture of his class and I just lost it.

Yes.

For 180 days, we have these students and are expected to educate them with content. For 180 days, we go through the trials and tribulations with them, supporting them, challenging them, caring for them, and loving them. 

I no longer have a group of students to call my own, to build that relationship, or to love. Instead, I work with teachers across an entire district to facilitate those feelings. Maybe that's the best I can do for now, and it's one of the trade-offs of having a more macro impact on education. 

If you are in the classroom, know that your kids want to be loved. Know that your kids want to have a voice. Know that, like those teachers who were at the conference, your kids want to be pushed. 

​Do that.

So... what do you agree with? What do you disagree with? How was your conference experience? Share below.

Happy "Gentle Nudge" Fishing
19 Comments
Chris Harris
11/7/2016 12:33:23 pm

Thanks for posting.
I didn't make the Inner Circle because I wasn't watching Twitter /#MTBoS when the invite went out. My bad.
But I was pleased to be greeted at the conference by many of my MTBoS friends and made a point of seeing as many of them as I could.
If I could redesign CMC I'd have a 4 day conference with 3 sessions each day and then time to mingle, network, make connections, see 'old' friends, maybe ask questions about that last session. How about 2 morning sessions then a 4:30 session? With rooms set aside to meet in "Elementary", "Middle" "High School", "Coaching" "Admin"
Just a thought. Thanks for the post!

Reply
John link
11/7/2016 02:32:07 pm

Chris,

Thanks for stopping by, and for offering up a comment. I appreciate your perspective, as always. My biggest fear of the 4 day experience is the growing cost to the attendee and CMC itself. It's twice as expensive for all, so would you be willing to pay twice as much to attend? That's more days away from your classroom; would people do that?

A compromise may be that, instead of a closing keynote, have breakout rooms for deeper learning. Would that work? Would you be interested in that?

Reply
Audrey
11/7/2016 12:50:57 pm

I want to see the data on #1 -- I felt that I saw lots of female presenters (I focused mostly on secondary sessions), and I think Dina, Nanette & Liem all did have their own sessions. Makes me wonder about our own inherent (and probably subconscious) biases to seek out sessions from those who look/sound like ourselves.

The Ignite talks inspired me most to think and do things differently, reminded me of my passion and excitement, and made me laugh & cry at the same time.

I attended some great sessions, and some okay sessions, and thought it incredibly unfair that so many of the fantastic #MTBoS were all presenting at 8:30a on Saturday during my own presentation. (Where is cloning when you need it?!?)

Thank you for posting your thoughts. It's helping me to continue to reflect on my own.

Reply
john stevens link
11/7/2016 02:34:48 pm

Audrey,

Thank you for the comment and for stopping by.

Also, thank you for calling me out on #1. Looking back through the program, I have realized that I just need to do a better job of expanding my selections when picking sessions. That's on me. As for the 8:30 Saturday slot, it always seems like there's at least one of those. I guess that's the nature of being at such a powerful conference?! After all, it's a good problem to have... right? I was in a small room during that slot and was worried that nobody would attend because so many others were going at 8:30. Imagine the job of the conference organizers!!!

Reply
David Butler link
11/7/2016 01:39:37 pm

Sounds like a great conference!

With reference to the "inner circle" it's hard not to feel like that if you're one of the 4000 who wasn't a presenter and sees the presenters together. Sometimes a person just need an explicit invitation to join in.

I have been to conferences where I felt on the outside of even the Outer Circle and just got worn down with the effort of forcing myself to join in. It's tough as a newcomer to always have to be the one to make all the effort. Sometimes you just need the people on the inside to be proactive in welcoming you.

As to Desmos, I am still figuring out what that is, and I can safely say it would be intimidating to see it everywhere and feel like I was on the back foot! I'm sure I'd be inspired to learn more, of course, but in the moment, I'd also feel the sting of missing out.

Perhaps one way those who didn't feel they got something new could have a good experience is to help a newcomer learn something new!

Sorry, that turned out really quite negative. I didn't set out for it to be that way, I just wanted to add a different perspective.

Reply
john stevens link
11/7/2016 02:38:14 pm

David,

Thanks for stopping by and adding a comment.

I appreciate your point about the Inner Circle. The strange thing is that only about 1/3 of the people at the table were presenting; the others just got lucky and saw the tweet to sign up for the dinner. With such a growing group, how can we make it more inclusive? Perhaps next year we should explore the food truck option and make it open to everyone? I really don't have a good answer. Inviting a +1 is a good idea, but who is the +1? I'm trying to wrap my head around that.

Your comment about Desmos is also very valid. Maybe there should be a Desmos session after all... Trying to navigate that one.

What conferences have you been to where you felt like it was truly inclusive?

Reply
David Butler link
11/8/2016 12:10:15 am

I think the +1 idea is nice, but it doesn't have to be a dinner! Just including someone new in your conversations throughout the day would go a long way.

To be honest I haven't been to any where the seasoned crowd seemed truly inclusive. Some were downright cliquey and people only seemed interested in talking to people they already knew.

john stevens link
11/28/2016 08:50:45 am

Hmmmm, that's good to know. Are you going to NCTM? Perhaps there could be something that we do in San Antonio that's more inclusive.

Teresa
11/7/2016 11:53:55 pm

David,
I can identify with you. I missed the Tweet also-- wrapped up in my classroom and family and not checking Tweets regularly. When I finally saw it, the form had closed. Alas, I happened to be eating at the same restaurant that night with my husband and saw everyone walk in. I pointed out all my favorite, influential math leaders as they walked by, talking about all the great ideas shared thus far. I was definitely not in the circle ~ a total silent newbie Twitter follower. (Except this weekend- I met my Twitter quota in two days.)
I've taught many years, but only heard about CMC in the last three years. I'm new to middle school, thus new to Desmos and also feel like I missed a big train here. I know it exists, but really need a hands on "How to Desmos 101" and heard many people on the shuttle between sessions looking for a session just for Desmos. The need is still there. It may not be new to everyone, but it's new to a large group of new teachers (or teachers new to older grades). Worth continuing!

Reply
john stevens link
11/28/2016 08:51:50 am

Teresa,

That's good to know. I will keep it in mind when proposing sessions in the future, especially since there are many others who probably feel just like you. Thank you for stopping by!

Chris
11/7/2016 01:43:15 pm

Just wanted to say that I enjoyed your presentation with Matt (even though I got stuck sitting in almost the back... maybe next year you two can be moved up to Primrose!?), and the other presentations I went to. This was, by far, one of the best CMC-South conferences I've attended in the past 8 years. Every presenter that I listened to was inspiring, innovative, and made me so excited to try some new things in my classroom. Much thanks to you and the other presenters and volunteers (and Brian!) for putting together such an excellent program this year. Can't wait to go back next year! :)

Reply
john stevens link
11/7/2016 02:39:59 pm

Chris,

Thanks for stopping by and for adding a comment. No matter where you were for our presentation, I'm grateful that you chose to spend time with us. As for where we need to be next year, that's up to the committee :)

We certainly aren't opposed to a bigger room!

I'll relay the rest of your message on to Brian because he and his team are really the ones who have made it all possible.

Reply
Myra Deister link
11/7/2016 04:07:21 pm

I presented 2 sessions. My first one was programming and had 10 very enthusiastic attendees. It was disappointing because math teachers are the ones credentialed to teach CS.

My last session was the last one of the day and once again I had 10 attendees. I incleded Desmos, but they were not interested in seeing it again.

Reply
Claire
11/7/2016 08:44:10 pm

The only other conference I've been to besides CMC South is CADA, which is held annually for teachers and administrators and coaches involved in activities and athletics. That conference is very inclusive and a party. (If you can imagine a conference of the kinds of teachers who dance in rallies and stuff like that.). If I remember, they had tags for the newbies attached to their conference name tag. So walking around, you can tell who might need to be included. They also have a session, forget what it's called, with a big room of tables of 10 and a presenter at each table. You have 15 minutes at a table, then move to a different table. Great for mini topics.

Reply
john stevens link
11/28/2016 08:53:50 am

Claire,

Thanks for stopping by. At CMC, there are ribbons that newbies can attach to their badge; is that what you are referring to? I love the idea of the mini topics, almost like a speed dating session. How big is CADA? The issue that I've seen with the bigger conferences is that as the conference grows, the inclusivity diminishes. I guess that's natural, but we could fight it.

Reply
Nanette
11/10/2016 11:23:38 am

My CMC South experience gets better and better every year.

I love how each of my sessions challenged me in different ways. I left the conference, knowing that I got exactly what I wanted and needed.

I also love how encouraging our community of math teachers is, on twitter, in person. I have learned soooo much from my colleagues.

Thanks for this awesome write up of the conference!

Reply
Andrew Stadel link
11/13/2016 11:29:24 pm

Thanks for this post, John. Your points resonated with me.
#1
I was pumped to see Lee Stiff present at CMC South because he is a fantastic presenter. I was bummed to see his room did not fill. Whoever is reading this and you have a chance to see Lee Stiff present, don't miss him. I agree that Lynda should have her own session. Believe it or not, this was her first conference presentation. EVER! Needless to say, that was quite a risk for her and she did awesome! I'm encouraging her to present at OCMC and next year's CMC...
#2 & #3
Yes, Desmos. My concern with Desmos being so commonplace is the focus on pedagogy behind the power of Desmos. I am so fortunate to work with teachers in my district willing to consistently use Desmos. I would be doing them a disservice if we weren't focused on purposeful use, strong pedagogy, questioning strategies, and learning outcomes. I'm thirsty for getting better at all of those things and am lucky to have teachers to take that journey with.
#4 & #9
CMC South has had a hot streak, due in part to so many great people working hard behind the scenes at CMC South, including Brian. Yes, teachers want to get pushed... and so do conferences. As presenters, I think we all need to push ourselves to provide attendees with an experience so great they can't get from reading a blog post or by following a few tweets. As our world becomes increasingly smaller and technology makes resources and people more accessible, I feel it is our (presenter) duty to stretch ourselves just as much (if not more) as teachers are expected to stretch when attending conferences.
#5
Yes, we need to make students voices heard. Hands down!
#6
I was bummed to not attend Avery's session. I always love his sessions and glad it was a great experience for you. Lucky me, I was able to sit with Avery in Nanette's session and learned a great deal from both of them.
#7
Daniel rocked the clothesline, FOR SURE. I'm so thankful for Chris Shore rocking that thing in my district last year. I believe teachers and students will continue to benefit from this dynamic tool.
#8
I'll say three things. I'm grateful to you and Matt. I loved getting to know Zach, Shelley, and Brandon during the meal. Anyone in that room would be the first to say there's always room because there is no inner circle.
#10
I couldn't agree more. Liem's was my favorite Ignite talk. Hands down! It struck multiple chords in me that I look forward to sustaining.

Reply
john stevens link
11/28/2016 08:56:37 am

Thank you for the recommendation about Lee; I'll be sure to circle his name on the list of presenters for next time around. As for Desmos, maybe this was the lull between years for it. The last few, it's been "check out this cool tool" and this year it was just an assumption of knowledge. Perhaps next year, a handful of sessions can take Desmos and put it at the center of a pedagogical conversation. How are teachers using it to push discussion and exploration in a math class? Either way, it's a noteworthy point. I always appreciate your insight.

Reply
Daniel Luevanos link
12/5/2016 06:59:21 pm

John -

I sincerely appreciate your kind words and your reflection from CMC-South. It is evident that you are 100% genuine and honest which is rare to find these days.

I hope you know that many people were in awe being at your sessions, especially me. The session that you and Matt put on really struck a chord with me. It reminded me to continue to take risks (low, medium, or high) and to continue to value the voice of our students. By doing so, we are building connections and making learning accessible for all of our students. Thank you for the reminder that we have to trust that students will give their best when given the chance.

Keep rockin', good sir!

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