Name : Nadila Choirunnisa’ Intsani

NIM : 19190037
Class : B

Essay Learning Mathematics in the Pandemic Era

Introduction
At the current pandemic, the state of the learning process is much different from
before. Usually, learning activity is done manually face to face, but now with the pandemic
outbreak, this is changing that process. Previously, students would come to school every
morning wearing a uniform and studying with their peers, but this pandemic outbreak makes
the learning process more involving with internet-based technology. It because the face-to-
face learning process is not done anymore as a government's effort to suppress the spread of
the coronavirus since mid-March 2020. The online learning process, which is not done by
face-to-face learning, makes the school deserted and students cannot play with their friends.
In this case, the role of parents is more dominant than before. Parents must provide
guidance and learning to their children by supervising and accompanying the learning activity
process. of course, this situation becomes a separate meaning for parents that educating and
teaching children in school is not easy. One of the difficulties experienced in learning
mathematics that does not seem to relate to daily life Misdalina et al. 2009 (Shinta et al.
2020) stated that the monotonous way of presenting mathematics lessons from the abstract
concept to concrete concepts, does not make children happy to learn.

Body Paragraph
Teachers of exact subjects, more specifically learning mathematics, certainly
experience considerable obstacles among teachers of other subjects. Coupled with students'
perceptions of mathematics which are considered difficult, complicated, and also boring. This
will make students less active during mathematics learning in particular. During the previous
face-to-face learning, many students had difficulty receiving mathematics learning material.
Participants will be increasingly inactive during mathematics learning. From what was seen,
it was felt during face-to-face learning that experienced many obstacles and problems,
especially when the learning was carried out remotely or online. However, of course, as a
great teacher, an innovative teacher, a creative teacher will be able to change the notion that
mathematics is difficult, complicated, boring, too many numbers, too many formulas, etc.,
and change students who are initially inactive to become more active. in mathematics
learning.
According to Leli Sugiarti in the Mathematics Olympiad Webinar (OPTIKA 20) with
the theme "The Role of Technology in the Development of Learning and Teaching Skills to
achieve Higher Level Thinking", there are four skills that an educator or a teacher should
have (Romlan, 2020). First, a teacher must have a patient nature as well as a persistent nature.
These two traits are very important to face all the traits, characters, and personalities of
students. Because basically, students have a high curiosity which might push students to act
out of bounds or off-track. Second, understand and follow the increasingly rapid development
of Science and Technology (Science and Technology). Teachers must be able to respond to
these developments to design a virtual learning process, in particular, to make students more
active. For example, at times like this, students will be more active via the internet and also
their social media, so the teacher must also be able to keep up with and also respond to this.
Third, teachers must have creative and innovative thinking so that they can find something
new in learning mathematics. Fourth, teachers must be able to manage the virtual world. The
news that is spreading in cyberspace today, of course, is very much and as a teacher, you
must be able to filter out which news is true and which is just a hoax. Teachers must also be
able to take advantage of social media as a learning tool.
With a teacher mastering these skills who can apply them in learning, the teacher can
be said to be a successful teacher in the learning process. With the four skills that are applied
in learning, we will get a student who has moral character, has skills in technology, can also
manage information, has skills in learning, is active in learning, creative and innovative
thinking skills, and learners or students can compete in the global era or internationally.
A mathematics teacher must pay attention to the methods and styles of delivery that
are used. Especially in learning that is done remotely or online. Because as we know before,
mathematics is a science that can be called an abstract science. This is done so that a learning
process can run well and the learning objectives can be maximized. In distance learning or
online, teachers are required to avoid floating math learning, because it can result in learning
taking place without a good pattern which leads to inefficient learning. In substantiating
abstract concepts in mathematics learning, teachers can implement technology in making
multimedia-based materials. These teaching materials can be arranged with text or videos that
are interesting, concise, clear, and also contain explanations, sample questions, and
discussions, as well as practice questions consisting of easy, medium, and difficult practice
questions.
 Attendance or online attendance checks must also be done in various ways. This is
intended so that the atmosphere of learning varies at each meeting so that students or students
do not feel bored. In an online learning period like today, attendance or checking the
attendance of students is very important. This is because the presentation will be evidence of
the presence of students in every lesson. In addition, this presence is also a form of a teacher's
effort in inviting students to be active in learning mathematics in particular.
Interactive learning is learning that aims to realizing fun learning which will cause the
learning objectives to be achieved. This learning, of course, is very important to be realized
by a teacher. Steps that can be taken to achieve interactive learning, namely, first, doing
motivation at the beginning of learning. This will later become a benchmark for the success
of a lesson. Some experts state that the initial or first minutes in the learning process are a
valuable time for further learning hours. The motivation that is right, good, and hits students,
will make students feel happy, calm, and relaxed, usually, this condition is referred to as an
alpha zone condition which means it is the brightest stage in the creative process of a person's
brain. Therefore, it is very unfortunate if starting from the beginning of learning a teacher
does not motivate students, which will result in the unpreparedness of students in the
following learning to the next stage.
Second, avoid using a long period when delivering material or information, because
this will result in a feeling of boredom in each student. With the emergence of this feeling of
saturation, later it will be able to eliminate the concentration of students in learning. Third, a
teacher always tries to give appreciation and reward in the form of words to each student who
has responded well in the learning discussion process. This will result in a growing
enthusiasm for learning for each student. Fourth, even though the learning process is not
carried out face to face, at least we still have to respect the existence of students by
mentioning the names of students who are less visible in the chat room. That way students
will feel cared for and also feel valued by their existence. Fifth, provide clear instructions or
information, inspire readers to respond, and do not use short sentences that seem stiff. It
would be better when commenting on students' responses that it is always followed by
humorous sentences, jokes, and so on so that it seems like face-to-face learning is usually in
class. Sixth, give a break of about 5-10 minutes for students to calm down in the middle of
learning, but still emphasize the discipline of time as arranged at the beginning of the lesson.
During a pandemic like this time, the curriculum used is simpler than before. So that
this becomes an important part for teachers to as much as possible be able to provide material
that is very meaningful to students. One way to achieve this is by using a realistic
mathematics approach or commonly known as Realistic Mathematics Education (RME).
RME is a learning theory that has been developed specifically for learning mathematics.
According to Suryanto and Sugiman (Kusumawati, 2012), RME is an approach that has the
following characteristics:
1) Using contextual problems, namely mathematics is seen as a daily human activity, so
solving life problems faced or experienced by students (realistic contextual problems for
students) is a very important part.
2) Using a model, namely learning mathematics means working with mathematical tools of
horizontal mathematical results.
3) Using students' results and constructs, that is, students are allowed to find mathematical
concepts, under the guidance of the teacher.
4) Learning focused on students.
5) There is an interaction between students and teachers, namely learning activities including
solving realistic contextual problems, organizing mathematical experiences, and discussing
the results of solving these problems.
Learning mathematics using a realistic mathematics approach or Realistic Mathematic
Education (RME), can provide opportunities for students to always be active in interpreting
mathematical knowledge. The problem-solving process starts with connecting to problems
that can be imagined by students. After that, students are given the freedom or discretion to
be able to determine the problem-solving strategy independently. After students are given this
freedom, slowly, the teacher guides the students to solve these problems mathematically.

Conclusion
In mathematics learning, especially when learning occurs remotely, many ways can
be done to make learning feel meaningful. Distance learning as it is today will be done at
home where it will be a challenge for teachers and parents alike. Moreover, the assumption
that mathematics is considered abstract learning and less attractive to students. With a
realistic mathematics approach, it can be an alternative in learning mathematics. By using this
approach, it can provide opportunities for students to always be active in learning
mathematics. Because this realistic mathematical approach has characteristics that can
facilitate students in learning mathematics, such as the use of contextual problems, the use of
learning models, the use of construction results from students themselves, focused learning
on students, and also the interactions that occur between students and students. also teachers
in dealing with contextual problems.
Reference

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