Twitter Math Camp and the Convergence of The Work
This weekend, I had the pleasure of attending Twitter Math Camp 2016, a conference organized by the collective known as MTBoS. As the name suggests, this set of social-media-connected math teachers created a conference where they could network, have deep conversations, and share ideas about pedagogy, curriculum, and content. Even though I’m technically part of this collective as a veteran math teacher who’s been on Twitter since June 2008, I’ve felt disconnected from this community for some time. I set aside my protractors and pocket protectors for raised fists and black wristbands.
Yet, the entire time, I thought if I held my breath long enough, the folks in that community would inch themselves over to my arena, even if just to take a peak.
The culmination of said efforts happened when they invited me to come speak. I take all speaking engagements seriously, but this one felt meaningful for two reasons:
- Minneapolis was already a site of civil unrest after the murder of Philando Castile.
- With 200 attendees, I was reminded on several occasions how excited people were to hear me speak.
I almost wanted to respond, “You know this is a package deal, right?” I’m going to speak on Black lives mattering. I’m going to speak on under-served to Native American / First Nations children across the state of Minnesota. I’m going to tell math people to do more than talk about math. I won’t Twitter Math Camp and the Convergence of The Work | The Jose Vilson: