Madeleine Gertsen
Reporter
Every year at NCHS, students create music videos based on math concepts. The winner is chosen after careful selection by the math department teachers. This extra credit opportunity encourages to create a memorable video that will be remembered for years to come.
According to math teacher, Sean Killelea, the contest is open for all grades and levels in the high school, and teachers from the math department enjoy watching them all. “The great thing about the contest being open to the whole school is that everyone can participate and it’s not one kind of student that submits,” he said.
“We thought it might be fun to open this up to the whole school as a way of giving students an opportunity to use math in combination with something they enjoy,” said Jennifer Lee, the math department chair. “I think the music videos can make math topics and formulas more memorable, as well as easier to remember.”
Not only is the contest open to every student in the school, but it’s for extra credit. The extra credit aspect of this contest not only encourages past participant students to submit, but students are allowed to work with their friends and in a group. Senior Gita Abhiraman has submitted a video every year and her videos have been selected in the top five every time. “Overall it was a nice way to earn extra credit while working in a group,” she said.
With the motivation of winning the contest, students surprise many teachers with their creative ideas and entertaining videos. These math music videos offer a way for students to explore math in a more fun and upbeat way. “A lot of the times there will be dancing or costumes for whatever the storyline of the music video is,” Mr. Killelea said.
“We like that the videos get students, both participants and viewers, to talk about math outside of their math classes,” Ms. Lee said.
Past students would agree that these music videos present math ideas in an enjoyable way. One of the past music video winners focused on the concept of SOH CAH TOA, and students have been singing it even today. “As soon as I say SOH, all the students start singing ‘SOH CAH TOA…’ because they know the video,” Mr. Killelea recalls from his Precalculus class. “And it’s great because it’s something that the students see every day in class.”
“If I had any tips it would be to pick a simple topic and explain it as much as you can,” Gita Abhiraman suggested. Teachers encourage their students to submit videos, but part of being a winner is coming up with an idea that has never been done before. Whether that is incorporating a sport or dance into the song and lyrics, making these videos funny or catchy is what makes people remember them.
The submissions for this year are due December 17th, so it is not too late to pick a topic and group and receive extra credit for a music video. Coming from an insiders perspective, Mr. Killelea notes the many criteria for a strong video, as well as the fact that mathematical content and entertainment value are both looked at and taken into consideration. “Take into account math, entertainment value, and how much work the you have put into it.”
Not only can these videos help students learn math, but also it can be something that groups of friends do annually together. “Because it’s fun to make, I definitely suggest it for everyone,” Gita said.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhegCLgt2X8
The SOH CAH TOA video winner from three years ago
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UznotwrNgGI
The My Trig video winner from one year ago
