Hanna Norris

Video Project #2

Angles of Depression and Elevation

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFqpgfJOWYI

The major concept of my video is teaching students how to calculate the angle of depression.

Through the teaching of the major concept, students will also learn how to draw a picture to

represent a scenario, how to calculate the angle of elevation, and use their prior knowledge to

solve problems. I want students to practice the procedure of drawing a picture and using their

prior knowledge to solve new problems. Drawing a picture should always be a procedure for

angle of elevation and depression, so this video emphasizes that students should know the

importance of this procedure. I believe students do not draw enough pictures, so I included a real

picture in the video. As well, I want students to get comfortable with reviewing their prior

knowledge before jumping into a problem; that is why I am making this a procedure in my video.

This topic is important because many students struggle with differentiating the two concepts,

when they are the same angle! Students may draw their pictures incorrect and this causes

confusion. I got inspiration for this video when tutoring a Math 2 Honors student on the topic.

She was having an extremely hard time visualizing the concept through my hand drawn sketches

and I wanted an animated computer version of my drawings to help her. The goal of the video is

to help students visual what these angles are and how to draw them given context.

My research for this topic helped me figure out where I wanted to take this video. I knew I

wanted context that has a good chance of interesting the students. Cheng and Thompson (2016)

use the context of a labyrinth to create a diverse set of mathematical questions to ask students
(Cheng & Thompson, 2016, p. 254-257). It is motivating to see how many different math

concepts can be covered using one context. However, I did not use this context because I felt the

students would not find it meaningful. According to Hernandez et al (2017), the first three steps

of the mathematical modeling process are: identify and specify the problem to be solved, make

assumptions and define essential variables, and do the math to get a solution (Hernandez et al,

2017, p. 338). In my video I modeled the first three steps to prepare students to use the modeling

process in the future. Although the problem in the video is not a modeling problem, students can

still practice their mathematical habits of mind and modeling skills. According to Levasseur and

Cuoco (2003), “mathematical habits of mind develop as a by-product of teaching mathematics

through problem solving” (Levasseur & Cuoco, 2003, p. 36). In my video I model problem

solving and I encourage the students to do the same. I do not include an example of angle of

elevation because I want students to take what they have learned from this video, while using

their habits of mind, and solve an elevation problem on their own.

The audience for this video is probably Math 1 and Math 2 students. Like I said, I got the

inspiration from a Math 2 Honors student. I think high school students would find the context a

little fun. So, this video could be used in any middle school or high school class that is learning

this concept with the prior knowledge already taught. I think this video could also be used for an

introductory college course. I might change the context for older students, but I think it is a very

universal context that can be used at many ages. The commentary is made for younger students,

so at the very least the video would have to be rerecorded for older students.

After making Video 1 and Video 2, I have learned that relatable context is important and

proper review is important. In my first video I used very weak context, purchasing apples. Also,

in my first video I quickly made sure the student knew of the prerequisites without checking if
the student knew the concepts and procedures for the prerequisites. In my first video I assumed

that if a student says they remember a concept it means they remember it. This is not always the

case, so it is best to just quickly review the topic for those who have forgotten. Also, reviewing

something the student already knows can be a confidence booster. In my first video, I also

assumed that apples were a good context when in reality they are simple and nice but not

meaningful to the students. To really draw a student in, to get them to engage, the context must

be interesting. So, with my second video I used much more interesting context and I heavily

review the prior material needed for the problem.

My classmates gave me great feedback for my storyboard. I was told to cut my video down

because it may be too long. That was great advice because my video was too long. Also, this way

the students can practice the elevation problem on their own and use their problem-solving skills

to solve those questions. I was also told to incorporate an actual Dude, Perfect video. The video

will really grab the student’s attention, and this will help them buy into doing the problem

presented. My video would be much less interested without the Dude, Perfect context. While

presenting my story board my classmates expressed positive feedback about my stop and go

signs. I incorporated one of each sign in the final video, so I did not overwhelm the students. I

use the signs because I want to make sure the students are not rushing through the problems.

When making this video I wanted to appeal to as many learners as possible: visual, auditory,

and tactile. I put a good amount of words into the video for the visual learners, as well I tried to

include as many animations as possible. I narrated the video for all the auditory learners that

would learn better if they could hear the words. This way, a student can listen to the video or put

it on mute and still get the same experience. For the tactile learners I highly encouraged pictures,

which everyone should be doing anyways. I fell a little short on accommodating the tactile
learners, but many students know what throwing a basketball feels like. So, I was hoping the

tactile learners could mimic throwing a ball like the given scenario and that would help them

because the context is relatable.

I tried very hard on this video because I want to use it in the future! As well, the student I

tutor said she would love to see it before studying for her end of the year final test. After

recording it three times I think I would still go back and record it again before using this video in

my classroom. I had some verbal errors. But, I also would like to add more practice problems for

the students to do within the video at the end. I did not properly address the tactile learners, so

given the chance to redo the video I would call them out. Possibly, tell them to crumple up a

piece of paper into a ball and throw it into something. This would help them get the idea, by

looking down (or up) at an object, of how the angles are represented in real life. Or possibly at

the end of the video, ask the students to use context in their lives to create a scenario where

someone must find their angle of depression or elevation. This way, students would have to

measure distances and come up with a problem on their own.

 References

Cheng, Diana and Thompson, David (2016). From blueprints to labyrinths. The Mathematics

Teacher, Vol. 110(4), 254-257.

http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5951/mathteacher.110.4.0254 (3.23.2018)

Hernández, Maria L., Levy, Rachel, Felton-Koestler, Mathew D. & Zbiek, Rose Mary (2017).

Mathematical modeling in the high school curriculum. The Mathematics Teacher, Vol.

110(5 ), pp. 336-342. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5951/mathteacher.110.5.0336

(3.23.2018)

Levasseur, K. & Cuoco, A. (2003) Chapter 3: Mathematical Habits of Mind, Teaching

Mathematics Through Problem Solving. National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. p.

27-37