[Blindmath] Help with Algebra 1 student requested

[Neil Soiffer]

I'm a bit hesitant to mention the following, but fools rush in where angels
fear to tread...

First off, I'll warn away those with no usable sight -- I don't think the
following will work for you.

Second off, there are those who feel it is important that students be able
to deal with the mechanics and details of math in addition to the concepts
of math.  Again, I don't think my suggested solution is for you.

Third off, I haven't used the program in ages (it makes me feel old just to
think about how long it has been), so it may have morphed into something
different than what I used when the person who wrote it first came out with
it (it has been bought and sold by two different companies since then).

If I haven't dissuaded you yet, then you might want to consider a program
called LiveMath (livemath.com).  A "quick tour" can be found
http://www.livemath.com/lmmaker/quicktour.php.  The second and third slide
are what I was thinking about.  The program is a "computer algebra" system
that acts a bit like doing the problem on paper.  In the case of algebra,
you'd type in the equation, grab some term and drag it to the other side.
The system rewrites the equation, handles the details of
adding/substracting/multiplying/dividing (depending on what you dragged).
You tell it to simplify or calculate when you feel it should.  Basically,
you direct it, and it deals with the details.  So, if you want the student
to learn the concepts of algebra but aren't concerned that they practice
arithmetic, this might be what you are looking for.

I can almost feel the rush of people starting to type to argue that this is
horrible or great (especially if it were made accessible), so I think I'll
duck out now ;-)

Neil Soiffer
Senior Scientist
Design Science, Inc.
www.dessci.com
~ Makers of MathType, MathFlow, MathPlayer, MathDaisy, Equation Editor ~





On Tue, Feb 7, 2012 at 7:09 AM, Julian, Kate <KJulian at bluevalleyk12.org>wrote:

> Hi,
>
> I am supporting a student in Algebra 1. We are getting into more
> complicated equations and he is getting lost. He prefers to use his vision
> and the computer for math, we have tried using his BrailleNote and Nemeth
> code, but he prefers the computer.  The following is how he would complete
> setting an equation to y:
>
> -3x + 2y = 12
> -3x + 3x + 2y = 12 + 3x
>
> After this step, he gets mixed up and when assisted will write this:
>
> 2y = 12 + 3x
> 2y/2 = 12/2 + 3x/2
>
> Here he will often drop negatives and/or forget a term. For me, I too
> would get lost.
>
> Is there another way for him complete this work? He actually does the work
> in MathType and then pastes his work into a Word document. We have tried
> using Math Window, but that too is tedious and he may not take it home. He
> is unable to handwrite anything. We have tried having him use a screen
> reader, as he often relies on his memory and makes mistakes, but the screen
> reader does not work well with MathType.
>
> Help, we are about to go into solving equations with variables on both
> sides of the equal sign and systems.
>
> Thanks - Kate
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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