Final Reflection

 I have really enjoyed and benefitted from this course, both as an educator and someone passionate about mathematics. I very much appreciated the time that we spent on non-standard mathematical games and puzzles, as that is something that I entered the course with a fascination for. I also found each and every one of the course readings to be interesting and insightful. In particular, I liked Hewitt's distinctions between arbitrary and necessary - it's always nice when someone articulates well an idea that you have been wrestling with in abstraction. Another thing that I found very beneficial in the course were the microteaching assignments, both curricular and otherwise. It was a really useful exercise in time management! 

I don't believe that my philosophy or opinion has been greatly changed within this course. The word that I would use instead is reinforced. It has been illuminating to both engage with a legacy of academic sources as well as with my classmates on issues which I had in the past only discussed with a handful of other educators. New perspectives are always valuable, for sure.

Coming away from the course, the one thing that I feel somewhat shaky about is the final unit plan assignment. Obviously, time is at a premium, but I don't feel as though I have really been taught how to construct a lesson plan anywhere in the program, though there have been a number of assignments to create them. This may well be an intentional choice, considering lesson/unit plans to be a personal tool unique to the individual, but what it has mainly resulted in is developing skills in the realm of template-filling. Hopefully some feedback on the unit plan I have already submitted will change my stance on this, however!

Thanks for a wonderful semester and happy holidays!