Let's look at a video excerpt of a classroom in action. In this video, you can observe the students in Jeanne Shimizu-Yost's Algebra II class as they work on problems involving exponential functions, similar to the ones we've just observed in Mr. Costa's class. Note particularly how students use a variety of solution methods as they work through the problems.

Reflection Questions

As you watch, keep these questions in mind:

• In what ways do the students in the video have opportunities to increase their understanding of exponential functions as they communicate about and use a variety of representations throughout the activity?
• What connections are made between the mathematics, the technology, and various forms of representation?
• In what ways are the students motivated -- even empowered -- by the open-ended nature of the task of reporting on their observations?
• In what ways is the lesson appropriate to the teacher's goals of assessing students' understanding of exponential functions, logarithmic functions, and problem-solving techniques?

Now watch an extended segment at left (duration 4:25) of the "Exploring Functions" video.

  Observe a classroom