This week's (and the third to last ever, perhaps) Student of the Week is Jaden P.

No, in this photo we are not displaying our well-disinfected / washed hands during these Covid times. The "five" is for the number of times I taught Jaden Math at King George. Math 8, PreCalculus 10, PreCalculus 11, PreCalculus 12, Calculus12.

I  have had the pleasure (I really   do love it) of teaching kids all five years of their high school lives quite a few times now... I'd say around 50 in total. And of all those kids I'd say that Jaden changed the LEAST from grade to grade 12.

Sound  like I'm  being rude? Not  at all! What I mean by that statement is  that, even in grade 8, Jaden was already extremely mature (top 5 most-mature-grade-8-boys I've taught in 24 years of teaching). He was responsible and honest, determined and motivated, friendly and polite. And that was in grade 8!!! And (not surprisingly) he is still this way.

In five years I think the harshest thing  I have ever had to say to him is "try to get here on time, Jaden". So then he did. 

Talk about an easy student to  teach. And such a good person. He actually worked with one of my 23-year-old daughter's best friends a while back. She told me: "Jaden is such a nice guy. It's hard  to believe he is still in high school". Jaden, I think it is safe to say that it is good news when 23-year old girls are surprised you are still in high school. :)

It's been an awesome five years, Jaden. Remember  the Wadge-mantra: (1) work hard, and (2) be 100% responsible for everything in your life. You have so much going for you; you are truly a "can't-miss prospect". If the despicable Denver Broncos ever  win another Superbowl (ick!)  the only thing that will make it bearable is the knowledge that it makes you  very, very happy! Love ya JP! All the best!

Are we alone in the universe? This is one of the biggest questions science is trying to answer. Many are inclined to think that there is indeed life beyond Earth. After all, there are billions of galaxies each with billions of stars. Surely, among them, there must be other Earth-like planets and sun-like stars capable of seeding life.
But however groundbreaking finding microbes on another planet would be, that would pale in significance to making contact with another alien civilization.
There’s actually a way to estimate how many alien civilizations may reside in the Milky Way thanks to a statistical model developed in the 1960s known as the Drake equation, named after astronomer Dr. Frank Drake.

A school year unlike any other is coming to a close, but one thing remains the same: We’re still tussling, in the same old ways, over how math should be taught. More data science, less stuffy trigonometry? Students placed in separate classrooms by test scores or doing differentiated work in the same classroom? These questions are vexed, but I’ve got one suggestion for how we can improve. We can tell students that math is very, very hard.
It’s the truth. The techniques of algebra, geometry and calculus were hard to create, and they’re hard to learn. But saying so forthrightly doesn’t come naturally to a lot of teachers — or to commenters on education. “Math Is Not Hard: A Simple Method That Is Changing The World,” reads a headline in HuffPost, extolling an approach that aims to help ease kids into the subject. I embraced rhetoric like this when I was an apprentice college instructor. I was constantly telling students, at the outset of a computation, “Now this is pretty simple” — encouraging them, or so I thought. My mentor, the master teacher Robin Gottlieb, now a professor at Harvard, set me straight. When we say a lesson is “easy” or “simple,” and it manifestly isn’t, we are telling students that the difficulty isn’t with the mathematics, it’s with them. And they will believe us. They won’t think, “I’ve been lied to,” they’ll think, “I’m dumb and I should quit.”.

This week's Student of the Week is Yasmin A. 

Yasmin and I had an interesting first year of Math together. If memory serves me correctly, she wrote a test to see if she could move from Math 8 to PreCalculus 10. She did AMAZING on the test so I gave her permission to skip Math 9. Just one problem: PreCalculus 10 did not fit into her schedule. But it seemed ridiculous to have her sit in a class that she already knew all the material.

The solution? Yasmin became a class of 1 person! She would come to my class during my Spare block and work on Math. She learned the material from my videos and I would help her when necessary (about four times in the entire year). It was great fun! There were some grade 11s or 12s who hung out in my class at that time and we all had a nice time chatting together while Yasmin did Math (and I did a little marking or something).

After that nice experience, I got to teach Yasmin three more times. Lucky me! Yasmin is a great Math student. She works hard and gets excellent marks. But what I respect most is her total commitment to truly UNDERSTANDING all of the material. This takes patience and discipline and is a hallmark of the very best students.

One of my favourite memories of Yasmin is when I horrified her with my ignorance. She showed me a question she had been struggling with. There was one part where she did something like the following:

3^2  x  4^2  =  12^2

I looked at it uncertainly for a few moments and then stammered: "wait. can you do that?".

Yasmin was APPALLED! She looked at me pityingly. "Of course you can do that, Mr. Wadge". And, yes, you can do that. But I wasn't sure at that moment. And the only thing Yasmin was sure of at that moment is that her Math teacher was a moron (she's not wrong).

Sorry to disappoint you, Yasmin. Especially since you have NEVER disappointed me.  You are, in fact, one of the kindest, most appreciative, warm-hearted people I have ever met. I feel blessed to have taught you the past four years and will truly miss you next year. Good luck next year at the University of Toronto (so proud of you for following your heart!). I KNOW that great things await you and you deserve them all! Love you, YA!

Most popular answers are 16 and 2. Do you know which one is correct?

The Vancouver School Board’s decision to do away with honours math and science programs has sparked criticism from parents, and a past participant who says the move will not actually advance equity.
Eric Hamber secondary is one of only two schools that still offers the option to students in Grades 8 to 10. The accelerated program covers three years of math in just two and is not available for all students. According to the school’s website, students who are eligible to enroll in the programs have “demonstrated an interest” in the subjects, as well as an “attitude and work ethic.” In addition to a faster pace, students will “will learn to function academically in an oral and written sense commensurate with that expected of a class of highly motivated and able students.” in the math program, students participate in extracurricular competitions, and “other enrichment activities”

This week's Student of the Week is Tony K!

Tony is a surprising fellow. When I first met him (when he was in grade 9) he struck me as a quiet, unassuming, sort-of-shy student.

Wow! Did I ever underestimate Tony! The guy is a dynamo! We are talking just all-around amazing! Consider the following:

1. SMARTS - Tony is one of the best Math students in the school. He is the rare student who makes me a bit nervous when he asks questions. Why? Because he has such good insights, notices connections, is right on top of things. His questions are often not the "typical" question I've come to expect. I have to really be prepared for what he is asking.
2. SCHOLARLY - what makes Tony such a good student is not his natural ability. It is the persistence and internal motivation he displays. He always does his best. He always seeks complete understanding.
3. CREATIVE - quite frankly, Tony has made some of the highest quality videos a student has ever handed in to me. Incredible production values! Funny! Professional! And that singing voice!! (hahaha)
4. SENSE OF HUMOUR - not just in the videos. Tony has an understated way of being funny which just makes things even more hilarious. He is never loud and obnoxious (that's more my style) but deftly slips in witty lines here and there when I'm not expecting it. Plus, he's sort of weird (which I love). Like when he includes a photo of me (which I didn't even know he took) or Narihiro or Anthony with almost every homework assignment. Weird, right? But very amusing (except for the photos of me when I look soooooo old!!!) :(
5. ATHLETIC - a few years ago at the triathlon, Tony was starting his swim 10 seconds after me. Now I'm not saying I'm a great swimmer but I figured I would leave Tony in the dust. So I make the first turn and hazard a glance... and Tony is definitely less than 10 second behind! So I pick it up a bit and at the next turn... he's even closer! We ended up side by side for the last 15 metres and - I won't lie - Tony nipped me at the line. Turns out he is a water-polo player (hardest sport ever!! Sooo exhausting!). Only thing I can say in my defence: someone told me he proceeded to barf in the bushes after his swim. And I still had to do the bike and run. :)
6. THOUGHTFUL - Tony does a lot for our school. Videos for all sorts of things. Scorekeeping. Interact club, etc. He's a good guy!

On top of all this, Tony, you have always treated me with the utmost respect and kindness. I know that you will do great things in the future but I am proud of you already. Proud of everything you have ALREADY accomplished and proud of the sort of person you are. The best compliment I can pay you: I was talking to a fellow teacher recently about how outstanding your ENTIRE grad class is. The teacher said: "you know the sort of person I'd love to be friends with if I was back in grade 12? Tony K!". I couldn't agree more!

It's been a wonderful four years with you in my class, Tony. Thanks for being such an easy and rewarding student to teach. Love ya!

This week's Student of the Week is Kat T.

Although I only taught Kat a couple of times (PreCalculus 12 and Calculus 12), I found so many things to admire about her. She is an incredible Math student. She is also an amazingly INDEPENDENT student. One gets the sense that she could learn most (all?) of the course material on her own... and she often does! This is less common in Math than other subjects and demonstrates impressive reasoning skills.

Kat is always friendly and has a great sense of humour. She frequently comes EARLY to class (another rare trait) and I always look forward to spending  a couple minutes in conversation with her. 

One of the most impressive things I ever witnessed Kat do, was after a test she wrote in PreCalculus 12. She was not happy with her mark (it was not BAD but definitely lower than her usual outrageously-high standard). Kat came to see me and asked to do a re-test. I reminded her that retests in my class are only for students who have completed ALL their homework for the chapter (which she had not done). She was obviously upset and expressed her disappointment... with herself. She did not whine. She did not look for excuses (work, other classes, etc). She accepted that I would not allow her to write a re-test and - though obviously disappointed - took responsibility. 

For the rest of the year, I think Kat must have ended up with 100% (or VERY close to it) and ended up with an outstanding mark overall. But what impressed me most was not her mark but the way she dealt with disappointment. This is something we can all learn from!

It's been awesome teaching you, Kat. Good luck with Engineering (lots of Math! Yay!); I know you will do great. I wish you nothing but the best in the years ahead. You deserve it! Love ya, Kat!