Using Cartoons to Make Connections and Enrich Mathematics

Authors

• Janet St. Clair, Alabama State UniversityFollow

Abstract

The article discusses the integration of cartoons into a finite mathematics college course. However, cartoon integration is appropriate for any educational level STEM course. Students and the author used an online comic strip creator, MakeBeliefsComix.com, to create cartoons that connected concepts to the real world and history. Following Cho, Osborne, and Sanders (2015), students wrote a paragraph about their cartoon and its mathematics. In addition to connecting mathematics to art and writing and unearthing students’ creative side, cartoons helped show the humanistic side of mathematics and promote communication and excitement about mathematics. The author developed a rubric to evaluate students’ cartoons. There was evidence that students who did cartoons were better able to explain a concept and give examples of its real-world connection than those who did not. The article has potential to encourage others to brainstorm about cartoon integration in their mathematics courses.

Reference

Cho, H., Osborne, C., & Sanders, T. (2015). Classroom experience about cartooning as assessment in pre-service mathematics content course. Journal of Mathematics Education at Teachers College, 6(1), 45-53. Retrieved January 10, 2018, from file:///C:/Users/st%20clairev/Downloads/1091-3251-2-PB%20(5).pdf.

First Page

86

Last Page

111

DOI

10.20429/stem.2018.020112

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Recommended Citation

St. Clair, Janet (2018) "Using Cartoons to Make Connections and Enrich Mathematics," Proceedings of the Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (Archived): Vol. 2, Article 12.
DOI: 10.20429/stem.2018.020112
Available at: https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/stem_proceedings/vol2/iss1/12

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