Use of Technology in Mathematics Learning

Use of Technology in Mathematics Learning

            Change of times have affected many areas of life such as technology, economics, education, environment to politics. Technology is one area in which development is very rapid. In addition to technology, there are other areas that appeared to have the most important role of education. With the prominence of both fields of education and technology can complement each other, which includes learning where education can be boosted with a new example by utilizing technological developments. Dealing with the rapid development of technology, products of technology can be utilized in the learning of mathematics.
            The material tends to be abstract mathematical and assessed monotone so as to change the general paradigm of the necessary mathematical technology as a tool that can help facilitate communication of content and facilitate student learning in receiving information. NCTM statements relation to the technology is quite clear that technology is an important tool for learning and teaching mathematics. Seen as an integral part of learning tools, technology can expand the scope of subject matter that can be learned about the students and can expand to be done by students (Ball & Stacey, 2005; NCTM Position Statement, 2003).
            The advances of technology have created opportunity in improving mathematics education. The aims of using technology are: (1) can use by teachers as technological tools to replace or complement traditional media, (2) can use as resource of science for students and also students may benefit from learning with technology. Examples of technologies that can be used in the teaching of mathematics, namely:
1.Calculator
            The calculator is a tool that is often required in calculating learning mathematics. The calculator can be used by students to speed up the calculation process. Students may use a calculator once he understands a mathematical concept. However, not all materials can be used calculator math. Calculators are often used by students in schools usually are scientific calculator.

 

2. Computer Software
 
             Computers have a great potential to improve the quality of learning mathematics. Many things difficult to abstract or imaginative thought students might be presented through computer simulations. This of course will further simplify the thought of students in understanding mathematics. Thus the process of learning to do mathematics teachers by empowering computer software. Some of the software that can be utilized in the learning of mathematics teachers are as follows:
a. GeoGebra Software & Cabri: to assist in painting geometry quickly and accurately, the facility animations and movements so that a better understanding of the concept.

            

                   Geogebra                                             Cabri                               
b. Microsoft Mathematic

 It usually used to solve equations step-by-step while gaining a better understanding of fundamental concepts in pre-algebra, algebra, trigonometry, calculus.

                                              

c. RedCrab
 ReadCrab is a free scientific calculator software comes with a full screen formula editor. This software is very different from the software calculators in general, because by using RedCrab, we can enter mathematical expressions in the editor window designed very much like a sheet of paper

                                                                 

d. Autograph

Autograph is a software that offers the user facilitate to graph mathematical functions that take a long time in the making. Usually we as math teachers often run out of time simply because it presents an image of a function of the square, sine, cosine, linear programming, turn the volume objects and polynomials. So autograph can solve that problem.

  

                                               

e. 7Math.

This mathematical software is portable, lightweight and can be used directly, this software is to help teachers who have difficulty in solved matter- differential and integral.

                                               
f. Precalculus Solved.

This software has ability in solving mathematical problems especially non-calculus. The ability of the software is able to solve math problems step by step to find the simplest answer.

     

g.Maple

Maple is a commercial computer algebra system. It was first developed in 1980 by the Symbolic Computation Group at the University of Waterloo in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. Since 1988, it has been developed and sold commercially by Waterloo Maple Inc. The current major version is version 16 which was released in March 2012.

                                               

3. Internet
    The Internet can be used for  learning progress. Internet enables teachers to conduct learning more effective and interesting. One feature that is often used the internet there is a website. Now many websites that can be utilized in learning, among which are:
a. Dropbox, Google Drive, SkyDrive
 All the websites are websites that are used as file storage. For example, the website is used to store the Student Worksheet (LKS) then collaborated to students. So, before learning takes students have got worksheets to learn. Or even to specific files, pdf form, for example, can be edited by students and then printed and given to the teacher when learning takes place.
                                          
b.Classmarker
 When the study is completed, the test is a tool to find out how far the students' understanding of the learning material. Classmarker is a website that can be used to make the test online.
                             

c. E-book and e-learning

Electronic book or e-book, e-book can be provided by the teacher or assigned to students to find reference books from the internet. As for the e-learning can be used in learning example assignments online or email.

d. Social Media
 Social media, like Facebook and Google Plus, it can also be used as a means of supporting learning. Social media can be used as a discussion with teachers, students with students, and teachers with teachers. So in addition to learning in the classroom, learning can be done remotely using social media, for example by using video conferencing on Google Plus.

                           

            With the use of learning resources and tools to transfer of materials as diverse mathematical followed a very exciting technological advances applied when in the process of learning, help facilitate communication between teachers and students in the transfer of materials, can make  learning math be fun, easy to understand or not abstract anymore and also not monotonous. So expect that can be increase motivation or interest of students to study mathematics so as to affect the increased mathematics value and mathematical skills of students.

PEMBELAJARAN BIASA

Pembelajaran Biasa

            Pembelajaran biasa sering juga disebut dengan pembelajaran konvensional atau pembelajaran tradisonal. Pendekatan pembelajaran konvensional saat ini adalah pendekatan pembelajaran yang paling banyak dikritik. Namun pendekatan pembelajaran ini pula yang paling disukai oleh para guru untuk diterapkan oleh guru di kelas ketika mengajar. Pembelajaran konvensional merupakan salah satu dari pembelajaran yang dimana cara penyampaiannya melalui  penuturan secara lisan atau penjelasan langsung kepada sekelompok siswa dan  sejak dulu metode ini telah digunakan sebagai alat komunikasi lisan antara guru dan siswa dalam proses belajar mengajar.

            Pembelajaran biasa yang dimaksud secara umum adalah pembelajaran dengan menggunakan metode yang biasa dilakukan oleh guru yaitu memberi materi melalui ceramah, latihan soal kemudian pemberian tugas. Kegiatan berpusat pada penceramah dan komunikasi searah dari pembaca kepada pendengar. Penceramah mendominasi seluruh kegiatan, sedang pendengar hanya memperhatikan dan membuat catatan seperlunya. Gambaran pembelajaran matematika dengan pembelajaran biasa adalah sebagai berikut: Guru mendominasi kegiatan pembelajaran, penurunan rumus atau pembuktian dalil dilakukan sendiri oleh guru, contoh-contoh soal diberikan dan dikerjakan pula sendiri oleh guru. Langkah-langkah guru diikuti dengan teliti oleh peserta didik. Mereka meniru cara kerja dan cara penyelesaian yang dilakukan oleh guru.                                                                                                                                                                          Pembelajaran biasa menurut Ujang Sukandi (dalam Sunarto: http://sunartombs.wordpress.com/2009/03/02/pembelajaran-konvensional-banyak-dikritik-namun-paling-disukai/ diakses 7 Maret 2012) mendeskripsikan bahwa: “Pembelajaran biasa atau konvensional ditandai dengan guru mengajar lebih banyak mengajarkan tentang konsep-konsep bukan kompetensi, tujuannya adalah siswa mengetahui sesuatu bukan mampu untuk melakukan sesuatu, dan pada saat proses pembelajaran siswa lebih banyak mendengarkan”. Di sini terlihat bahwa pendekatan konvensional yang dimaksud adalah proses pembelajaran yang lebih banyak didominasi gurunya sebagai “pen-transfer” ilmu, sementara siswa lebih pasif sebagai “penerima” ilmu. 

Pendekatan pembelajaran dikatakan sebagai pendekatan pembelajaran yang konvensional apabila mempunyai ciri-ciri seperti yang diungkapkan Philip R. Wallace (dalam Sunarto : http://sunartombs.wordpress.com/2009/03/02/ diakses 5 Maret 2013) sebagai berikut:

a.   Otoritas seorang guru lebih diutamakan dan berperan  sebagai contoh bagi murid-muridnya.

b.   Perhatian kepada masing-masing individu atau minat siswa sangat kecil.

c.   Pembelajaran di sekolah lebih banyak dilihat sebagai persiapan akan masa depan, bukan sebagai peningkatan kompetensi siswa di saat ini.

d.   Penekanan yang mendasar adalah pada bagaimana pengetahuan dapat diserap oleh siswa dan penguasaan pengetahuan tersebutlah yang menjadi  tolok ukur keberhasilan tujuan, sementara pengembangan potensi siswa diabaikan.

            Walaupun model ini kelihatannya kurang menguntungkan bagi siswa, tetapi bila ditinjau lebih jauh ternyata metode ini masih memiliki keuntungan seperti yang tertulis pada (http://dormatio.blogspot.com/2013/01/model-pembelajaran-konvensional.html diakses 10 Maret 2013), antara lain : 

1. Dapat menampung kelas yang berjumlah besar 
2. Bahan pelajaran atau keterangan dapat diberikan secara sistematis dengan penjelasan yang monoton. 
3. Guru dapat diberikan tekanan pada hal-hal tertentu misalnya rumus atau konsep yang dianggap penting. 

4.    Dapat menutupi kekurangan karena ketidaktersediaan buku pelajaran atau     alat-alat bantu sehingga tidak mengambat dilaksanakannya pelajaran.
               Namun demikian pendekatan pembelajaran biasa mempunyai beberapa kelemahanseperti yang tertulis pada (http://setiawan pendidikanmatematika.blogspot.com/2011/04/pembelajaran‑matematika konvensional.html) sebagai berikut:
a. Tidak semua siswa memiliki cara belajar terbaik dengan mendengarkan.
b. Sering terjadi kesulitan untuk menjaga agar siswa tetap tertarik dengan     apa yang dipelajari.
c. Pembelajaran biasa cenderung tidak memerlukan pemikiran yang kritis.
d. Pembelajaran biasa mengasumsikan bahwa cara belajar siswa itu sama     dan tidak  bersifat  pribadi.
               Berdasarkan penjelasan di atas, maka pembelajaran biasa dalam penelitian ini  dapat dimaknai sebagai pendekatan pembelajaran yang lebih banyak berpusat pada guru, komunikasi lebih banyak satu arah dari guru ke siswa, metode pembelajaran lebih banyak menggunakan ceramah dan demonstrasi, dan materi pembelajaran lebih pada penguasaan konsep-konsep bukan kompetensi.