Overview
Learn tools of effective thinking through puzzles and the world of mathematics around you in this fun and fascinating course.
A wondrously romantic belief is that brilliant thinkers magically produce brilliant ideas: Einstein jostles his hair and relativity falls out. We can enjoy these fanciful visions of leaps of genius, but we should not be fooled into believing that they’re reality. Brilliant innovators are brilliant because they practice habits of thinking that inevitably carry them step by step to works of genius. No magic and no leaps are involved.
Professor Starbird will discuss how habits of effective thinking and creativity can be taught and learned through mathematics. Anyone who practices them will inevitably create new insights, new ideas, and new solutions. Join us for puzzles and discussions prior to the course on Twitter (@StarbirdThink) and Facebook.
Faculty
Dr. Michael Starbird
Michael Starbird is a University Distinguished Teaching Professor of Mathematics at The University of Texas at Austin. He has been at UT his whole career except for leaves, including as a Visiting Member of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey and a member of the technical staff of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. He has received more than a dozen teaching awards including the Mathematical Association of America's 2007 national teaching award, the Texas statewide Minnie Stevens Piper Professor award, the UT Regents' Outstanding Teaching Award, and most of the UT-wide teaching awards including the Jean Holloway Award for Excellence in Teaching, the Friar Centennial Teaching Fellowship, the Chad Oliver Plan II Teaching Award, the President's Associates Teaching Excellence Award, the Dad's Association Centennial Teaching Fellowship, the Eyes of Texas Excellence Award (twice), and others. He is a member of UT's Academy of Distinguished Teachers.
He has produced DVD courses for The Teaching Company in the Great Courses Series on calculus, statistics, probability, geometry, and the joy of thinking and has given hundreds of lectures and workshops. He has co-authored several books including the innovative textbook for liberal arts students entitled "The Heart of Mathematics: An invitation to effective thinking." His new book with co-author Edward Burger is the general-audience book "The 5 Elements of Effective Thinking." You can learn more about his work at @5Thinking.
Effective Thinking Learning Team:
Marshall Payne
Instructional & Learning Designer, Department of Mathematics, College of Natural Sciences at UT Austin
Schedule
Each week, new content will be released. You will have the freedom to view all material released and take any quizzes, at any time after the content is released. We have not put timelines or restrictions on this course.
The course will end on December 14th, 2016. We will not set deadlines during the course. You can work on problems any time and at your own pace. If you complete 50% of the material by that dates, you will receive a certificate.
Grading
Each week we will have participation points for the various topics. You will be asked to comment in the forums or answer questions about the topics throughout the course.
Need help or have a question?
Let us know! If you have a question about the content, please join us in the forums and we will work to help you solve the issue. If you have technical issues with the edX platform, please go to the student FAQ provided by edX.
Connect with us online
Follow us on Twitter @StarbirdThink or on Facebook.