This semester, you have the option of completing a "reading project" in addition to the two required projects for this course. The project is simple: read one of several books that I have assigned, and then have a one-on-one interview with me about the book.
First the pragmatic, grade-related reason:
The default grading scheme for this class has your final exam weighted at 20% of your final course grade. This may not seem like much, but it is the single most important component of your grade. This may be disadvantageous for you, since most students don't do their best work at the end of the semester, especially during final exams, when they're being tested in all of their courses.
If you do the reading project, your final exam will be only 15% of your final course grade. Instead of assigning the extra 5% of your grade to your final exam, I will allow you to earn up to 8 percentage points by reading a book and giving an outstanding interview. Since you're graded on the usual 90-80-70-60 scale either way, this is basically a chance for you to earn some bonus points towards your final course grade.
As for the real reason you should do the project: I chose these books because they were either books I read when I was a kid that solidified my interest in mathematics, or books that I think will help you develop as a math teacher. My hope is that you will enjoy one of these books, and that your reading will inform your future mathematics teaching.
To complete the project, you only need to read one book. Here are your choices. I may add a couple more as the semester progresses.
How Children Fail by John Holt. This is the least mathematical of the selections I am offering, but I am including it because (as someone with no formal training in education) I think every elementary school teacher should read this book. The majority of the book consists of excerpts from a teaching journal Holt keeps in which he reflects on some of the things teachers do that inhibit student learning or prevent them from reaching their potential. Some parts of the book are somewhat derogatory towards elementary school teachers; I hope you'll understand that I do not endorse these views personally. I am assigning this book in spite of this rhetoric because I think the good parts of the book (teaching strategies and mistakes, how students cope with stressful situations) outweigh the bad.
Journey Through Genius by William Dunham. This book tells the stories of twelve famous theorems in mathematics. It includes fascinating narratives about the people who discovered the theorems, reflections about how people in centuries past thought about mathematics, and fairly accessible proofs of the theorems. In order to get the most out of this book, you'll need to be pretty confident in your algebra and geometry skills; if you did well in your high school math classes, that should be enough. This is a pretty dense book compared to the other offerings, so if you want to try this book, we'll probably work out a deal in which you read about half of the chapters (which can be read more or less independently of each other).
Beyond Numeracy by John Allen Paulos. This book is, in some sense, a "dictionary of higher mathematics." It contains about a hundred very short (2-3 page) chapters, each containing a layperson's description of a mathematical area or idea. Note that the fact that these are "layperson's descriptions" doesn't mean the book lacks mathematical content - some of the things I read in this book are still reflected in my mathematical thinking and in how I describe mathematics to people who haven't taken math courses beyond the high school level. Note that this book is different from Paulos' earlier book Innumeracy, which (from what I understand) is a screed about people who don't know enough mathematics to make wise decisions in everyday life. Beyond Numeracy is the one I want you to read.
Yes, a few. First of all, I'm going to schedule interviews on a first-come, first-served basis. Appointments can only be made by e-mail; if you set up an appointment with me in person, I will probably forget about it.
I have a total of about 60 students. I have no intention of doing 60 interviews in the last week of class. You do the math. You're much more likely to get the time you want (or to get a time at all) if you're willing to complete the project early in the semester. There is no reason why you couldn't complete this project in the next week if you wanted to. Nothing in this project requires the knowledge you'll acquire in this class (assuming you already know how to add, subtract, multiply and divide).
Here's the grading scheme for this project. You'll get a score ranging from 0 to 8 points:
0 (F) - Didn't read the book.