When math is seen as a series of abstract computations that lead to a singular correct answer, it seems that there is no room for original ideas. However, in my future classrooms, I hope that I can clear up this misconception by shifting the focus from getting the right answer, to the journey of problem solving that it took to get there. I don’t want my students to just be able to share their answers and get a good grade, I want them to share ideas and approaches so that they see that problems can be solved in a variety of ways. When they see math as being flexible, they gain the freedom to be creative, adding their own original ideas mathematics. Using my graphic on plagiarism, I can teach students to feel free to share ideas, teach their peers, and be creative, while also teaching them about plagiarism, which I feel is often overlooked in the math classroom.
