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爆料公社 Hosts Michigan Mathematicians
Published on October 15, 2025 - 11 a.m.
A mathematics conference hosted by 爆料公社 brought more than 50 educators to the Dowagiac campus on Oct. 11.
Interim President Brent Brewer welcomed the Michigan Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges (MichMATYC) to Mathews Conference Center West.
Chair of the 爆料公社 Math/Science Department and Professor of Mathematics Robin Shipkosky introduced keynote speaker Dr. Keith Nabb from the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Va.
For his topic, “The Active Learning Imperative: A Small Change with a Big Impact,” Nabb said he embraced active learning in 2012.
Active learning is an instructional method that involves students actively participating in the learning process through activities such as discussion, problem-solving and projects, rather than passively receiving information through lectures.
“My goal is to give you little things you can use on Monday,” Nabb said.
He demonstrated an activity called Four Corners, dividing participants based on whether they’re active-learning professionals, if they’re becoming believers from using it consistently, if they use it sporadically or if they’re brand new.
“The reason this is good is it makes you get up, which is an active task — not passive,” Nabb said.
Four breakout sessions filled the rest of the day. Nabb presented “Curiosity in Calculus.”
Steve Tuckey, the Raven Endowed Chair for Mathematics and Engineering at Jackson College, for example, addressed how instructional practices must evolve to account for artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as Chat GPT and MathGPT.
Dr. Rabia Gul Kirikcilar of the University of Michigan and Megan (Mack) McCormick of the University of Utah shared findings from an ongoing study exploring the experiences of community college students in math classrooms at three institutions, with a focus on college algebra.
Dr. Brian Mulholland of the University of Notre Dame tackled “Practical Pathways to Alternative Grading.”
Alana Tuckey, Kristi Laird and Allison Price of Jackson College discussed “Implementing Hy-flex on the Cheap.”
Hy-flex combines the terms “hybrid” and “flexible.” Hybrid learning refers to integrating complementary face-to-face (synchronous) and online learning (asynchronous) experiences.
Dr. Gerry Cox of Lake Michigan College presented various proofs of the Pythagorean Theorem, including one by Ann Condit, 16, a South Bend high school student, in 1938; and another by Albert Einstein when he was 12.
Pythagoras' theorem is a fundamental relation in Euclidean geometry between the three sides of a right triangle.
It states that the area of the square whose side is the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the areas of the squares on the other two sides.
