Faith-based Teaching and Learning

As a Christian, my world view will affect how I teach and why I teach what I am teaching. It
breaks my heart when students hate math and grow into their adult years excepting that they must
just be bad at it. This roots from the classroom environment of the past. Teachers would tell students
that they are wrong and students saw that some kids just seem to get it and the others just don't
have it. The old behavior worldview taught students to seek quick answers and memorize
procedures. This disregarded learning for understanding through reasoning and learning through
practical applications in our day today. Yet in Mark 12:31, it says the second most greatest
commandment is to love your neighbor (NIV). If we are to truly love our neighbor, putting our
students down when they get the wrong answer is us as educators failing. Math, including
geometry, should be about discovering different ways that make sense and fulfill the problems
purpose through reasoning. A wrong answer is part of the path to one that works. We should
encourage one another and be able to have discussions of reasoning, not to shut one another down
which leads to poor self-esteem and to students giving up on math quicker.
Since math, including geometry, is a part of creation that God called good, it also has a
purpose that clearly relates in the world. I will be teaching in a public school and not be able to
explicitly state that math or geometry is part of creation, but I will be able to explicitly show how it
relates to the world around them. This will give geometry a clear purpose increasing their
engagement and motivation. Yet, being a part of creation gives me an even stronger purpose to
teach it. I want students to explore God's creation and find their place in itlearning math,
including geometry, is part of that journey. As they see relationships between shapes in the world
and how it somehow all can be connected through reasoning, they might see the connection that
there has to be a reason for this. I may not be able to explicitly state that God created that order, but
I can plant that seed of curiosity that God can grow using our loving environment. I can ask
questions throughout my lessons such as why are there so many geometric patterns in nature? and

what makes a circle a circle? How do we know what makes the perfect shape, when we always
seem to be slightly of when making them?
Part of the fall broke the order of the world. Math, specifically in geometry, is sometimes
rejected as even a part of creation. Humanity uses geometry, to harm one another creating bombs
and sniping one another with guns. People have created sharp swords with the vertex of the angles.
Shapes such as the swastika have been turned to communicate fear and represent the Nazis. Math,
including geometry, is seen unattainable by many and used to call others dumb who do not perform
at high speeds.
Part of the redemption of math and geometry is treating one another as image bearers of
God. Genisis 1:27 states So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created
him; male and female he created them (NIV). Since I believe that every child is created in the
image of God, each one is valued and has the same right to education. I will accommodate students
with attention difficulties, sensory difficulties, and birth deformities. I believe that every student
represents a part of the image of God. When we take away students, we are missing part of that
image of God. I will stick students with birth deformities with students that have shown compassion
and have patience. They will be able to help these students while fully including them. Since he
cant hold a clipboard and pencil at the same time, he will be the one to take a picture for the group.
Every students will have an important part to the class, teams, and small groups. My student with
sensory difficulties will still be allowed to use his weighted snake pals and I can make sure that his
group is near an area that he can step out when needed. I will make my lessons with multiple means
of representation and expression so that it uses UDL to reach all the learners. I will also adjust the
lesson during the time I am teaching if I need to, so that they have a maximum learning
environment. This includes moving partner groups to different areas so that they can focus better.
This all represents how I will love all my students as image bearers. This doesn't mean that they will
get whatever they want, but rather what I think is the best for them and their learning.

My students will also explore how we can use geometry for good--to redeem others.
Without being told, they will be furthering the Kingdom of God. They will recognize geometry
being used for helpful communication, such as a stop sign. My students will also create an
aesthetically pleasing piece of art to put as the cover of a card that they will send to the troops or a
nursing home near by, who are in need of an encouraging note. In this way, they are using what they
are learning in geometry, and in English to lift up their community.
I will not be able to express my faith explicitly, but besides the learning environment, I can
show how math is connected to the world order and how it is important to learn for daily
applications. The students should use this worldview to see that we can all learn math to problem
solve real world problems. They will also be able to use their Chinese worldview to see how
different people in the world learn about shapes. One is not more right than the other. We use
math for a purpose and different purposes and cultures use geometry to benefit them in different
ways.

References

Holy Bible: New International Version. (2011). Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan.