Jo Boaler, PhD & MEd: National Board Certified Secondary Education Expert

E: I bought this book as a way to engage in some professional development. I received it in perfect condition and neatly packaged. I would recommend getting this if you are looking to deepen your understanding of how to teach mathematical concepts to students. I used this to teach younger grades (1-6) but I would say you could use it for older grades too.

Canada on Oct 04, 2023

Sabrina ZahirSabrina Zahir: I had to order this book for my university course. This arrived exactly as shown and I would’ve given it a 5/5. I am solely giving this product a 4/5 because of the bent corners of the book otherwise it arrived in perfect condition. However this could just be blamed on the shipping of the product. This would greatly help any primary teachers who are looking to teach maths more effectively with a focus on growth mindset within children!

United Kingdom on Jan 27, 2021

Robert Bocklandt: It is time school was organized from a different mindset. This book offers insight into the difference between a fixed and a growth mindset. Math no longer deals with fixed ways to deal with purely mathematical problems. Instead, it urges teachers and students to look around and wonder about the math behind everyday reality. With an open mind, teachers and students are solving problems together and there is more than one way to come to results. An absolute must-read for all teachers.

Canada on Jul 21, 2019

Amazon Customer: Though only part way through this exciting book I am hugely one over by Jo Boaler's incites into maths and maths teaching. Like many I didn't much excel at maths at school and certainly didn't enjoy it. But ever since I have had a sneaky suspicion that maths might be a great deal sexier than I had once given it credit. This book proves my suspicions correct! It's refreshing to say the least to know that making conceptual and calculation mistakes is such a positive experience for the brain and learning. This is just one of the many empowering messages contained in the book. As a one time primary teacher I was trained to help kids to 'embed' their learning but in all honesty never really understood how to actually apply this to maths teaching. Now I am inspired to return to my own maths learning and see where this takes me and I have already got some concrete tips on how to approach maths from the outset with my young children. I had been slightly dreading bringing maths to my children (we are home schooling initially) and feeling unworthy of the task, but no more! Thanks Jo for giving me a whole new way to look at Maths. I think this book is for anyone, but especially those who...

United Kingdom on Dec 09, 2016

Michael George: Prof. Boaler has encouraged me to try a more open approach with my teaching in algebra. I have tried to present a more open-minded perspective for my students than I have in the past. I have also tried to emphasize that it’s alright, and actually good, to make mistakes, when we struggle to learn, because then we are growing. I also tried to present the problems we have worked on in class in a more open-minded way. One can, to a certain extent, emphasize an open-minded viewpoint even with the very narrow procedural, and rule-oriented problems that we tend to work in an algebra class. For instance, one can emphasize that there are usually several approaches to solving problems, not necessarily the book’s or mine.

The focus on narrow, procedural problems is, as Prof. Boaler emphasizes, just a focus on one facet of mathematics, often not the most important. There is a whole aspect of critical and creative thinking that is being neglected. I like her analogy for the types of problems she seeks: Low-floor and high-ceiling.

Switching students from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset is very challenging. For example, projects in which the students engage in creative and...

United States on Oct 13, 2016

Mr. N. Moffatt: Before I proceed further, I offer a disclaimer - I have only completed one quarter of the book. I am therefore presuming the remainder of the book continues to be as extraordinarily brilliant.

The author is a Mathematics Education professor in the US. She writes lucidly, and concisely, and offers a fantastic paradigm shift in the understanding of Mathematics teaching. There is sufficient on the first 20 pages or so to radically change how teaching should be delivered, and how the entrenched, age-old methods are not only incomplete and poor at teaching the subject, but are the principle reasons for massive levels of maths anxiety and phobias.

For those in doubt, the book is heavily based on neurological and psychological research, and to very good effect, providing a sound foundation for a rethink in teaching across the world. It is that profound a book.

I will offer no spoiler details as you should buy and read the book with a clear, open mind. I offer a warning that mathematics teachers may feel deep cognitive dissonance.

I am not affiliated in any way to the author. I was just so thrilled by the messages in the book that I wanted others to receive...

United Kingdom on Dec 10, 2015

E.M.: A must-read for parents, teachers, and anyone involved in schools and education policy, especially as it relates to math! It's impressive how well the book addresses all these different audiences. There's not a lot of education jargon, and Boaler has plenty of relevant anecdotes to illustrate her ideas, making the book completely accessible to non-educators. There is is a good overview of the recent math education and mindset literature, without going too far into the arcane world of education research. At the same time, everything is well cited, so anyone who wants to delve into the details can flip to the references and find what they need. As a math teacher, I can say that this book really fills a void. In one readable and well-integrated volume, Boaler takes on such diverse topics as how people learn math; the importance of mindset and how it relates to math; how best to serve students at many different levels of math achievement; what math has to do with educational equity, and more.

Parents of students who are struggling in math will welcome learning about the research on math phobia and will find that Boaler provides much practical advice on how to change...

United States on Nov 11, 2015