Mathematics

Department Members About the Math Department Philosophy Learning Journal & Supplies Course Offerings

Department Members

The Mathematics Faculty of Miami Killian Senior High School consists of 23 dedicated educators. These highly qualified educators are involved in mathematics education on the local, state, and national level. Nine of our department members have Master's degrees, two hold an Educational Specialist degree and one is Nationally Board Certified.

Eighty percent of our students demonstrated learning gains on the 2004 Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. Ninety-five percent of our advanced placement students score above a three on the Calculus advanced placement exams and seventy percent of our advanced placement students score above a three on the Statistics exam.

Our faculty utilizes a state-of-the art computer lab to offer the Cognitive Tutor Algebra I program to each student. Each member of our department is a member of a learning team. These learning teams continually research, discuss and design learning activities which will enrich the mathematical experience of each student.

All mathematics courses consist of a full academic year of work. It is expected that students who take a Mathematics course will continue their mathematics education for four years.

Our courses are primarily concerned with developing the students’ understanding of the concepts of Mathematics and providing experience with its methods and applications. All courses emphasize a multirepresentational approach to
Mathematics with concepts, results, and problems being expressed geometrically, numerically, analytically, and verbally. The connections among these representations are important.

Our mathematics courses are challenging and demanding. Broad concepts and widely applicable methods are emphasized. The focus of each course is neither manipulation nor memorization of an extensive taxonomy of functions, curves, theorems, or problem types. Thus, although facility with manipulation and computational competence are important outcomes, they are not the core of our courses.

Technology is used regularly to reinforce the relationships among multiple representations of functions, to confirm written work, to implement experimentation, and to assist in interpreting results.

Our Goals

Students will be able to work with functions represented in a variety of ways: graphical, numerical, analytical and verbal. They will understand the connections among these representations.

Students will be able to communicate mathematics orally and in well-written sentences and will be able to explain solutions to problems.

Students will be able to model a written description of a physical situation with a function.

Students will be able to use technology to help solve problems, experiment, interpret results, and verify conclusions.

Students will be able to determine the reasonableness of solutions, including sign, size, relative accuracy and units of measure.

All mathematics students are required to have a mathematics journal. The student is required to bring this journal to class each day. A parent should review this journal with their child on a weekly basis.

Learning journals enable you to reflect upon your growth in mathematics. All of the teachers in the mathematics department have worked together to craft this learning journal program for you. After careful study and discussion, we have found that students who conscientiously follow this program find success in mathematics. Conversely, students who do not adhere to these procedures not only score poorly, but find it increasingly difficult to succeed. Your learning journal enables parents and teachers to assist you on a weekly basis. Please read these requirements carefully. Click here to download the journal requirements.

Click here to download a list of supplies that each student must have. These supplies must be brought to class everyday
and utilized during every class period.