For many teachers of today, the passion for teaching ends when they leave the classroom. But not for Angela Patterson, a Cass high school math teacher whose dedication towards education knows no bounds. Over the course of many years, Mrs. Patterson has been developing a multifaceted project known as EduEngineer. Originally designed as a training system for teachers to learn how to teach math, EduEngineer.com has since evolved to have its own website which holds lessons, teaching methods, and soon, student written articles. 

Prior to becoming a teacher, Mrs. Patterson worked in the corporate world, specifically organizing and creating systems. When the company she worked at shut down, she found her way to teaching through the Georgia TAP program, a program that helps people transition from the corporate world to the teaching world. Her experience from her previous work continues to affect both the EduEngineering project and her teaching methods in the classroom. When she began teaching, she realized that most teachers, especially in math, struggled to get students to retain information, which was when the project was first realized. This led her to create training programs for teachers so they could connect with students more effectively. The digital aspect of the project later came into fruition during the pandemic. She states, “I would build, record and post all my lessons, and I would wait for students to need me. But then I had something like six and a half hours to work, so I started building and creating a strong website and uploading videos and creating a dashboard for that. So that’s where it began.” Throughout this process of development, the ultimate goal has remained the same. She says, “My goal is still to help teachers teach math better, because if they can be better math teachers, then they can reach more students.” formerly creating systems for teachers she worked with, she now makes content for online teachers and homeschooled students. 

Her most recent development is the introduction of articles into her website. The topics of these articles are created by her, but the actual writing and research will be done by students. Including essays into math is a strange choice, but her reasoning truly reveals how much she cares about the subject. When asked about what she wants students to gain from writing these articles, she said, “I want you to realize that math is everywhere and it’s under everything, and if you don’t know that, then it will be used against you.” When elaborating, she used tipping machines, which are becoming more prevalent, as an example. These machines display three percentages of the expense that you could tip, however, they do not tell you what that percentage actually is. “If you don’t know math, you’re going to push one of these three buttons, and you’re going to have no idea how much money you’re about to pay that person.” She said, “And that is a manipulation.”

 As daunting as the subject of math can be, Mrs. Patterson provides an environment for students to cultivate their thinking skills and knowledge of math in the real world. She aspires to collaborate with students on research topics and continue fleshing out her website to serve teachers and students alike. If you, the reader, enjoy writing and research, especially subjects relating to math, then here’s where you can get a healthy mix of the two. More information can be found in Mrs. Patterson’s room, number 2.155, where she welcomes you to check out the most recent topic she has drafted, “How Math Ruined Concerts: Investigating Demand Pricing”. With this project, it enables you to expand your education beyond the classroom, which is what any dedicated student can hope for.