Photography by Owen Jones

Many students have sat in math class questioning whether they’ll ever use a certain formula in their everyday lives. But statistics can be applied in any real-world situation. Just ask Woodrow Wilson instructor Thao Le. 

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She tasked her students with calculating the success rate of getting a second date on the local radio program Second Date Update. The segment, which airs every morning on New Country 96.3, features callers who have gone on a date but never received a second one. The show host connects the two parties to find out what went wrong and set them up on a second meeting if they choose. 

Students listened to the show and categorized the data into qualitative and quantitative variables. Reasons for not going on a second date included being forced to eat spicy food and being catfished. Out of 255 episodes, they found that the chance of getting a second date was just 13.7 percent. 

Le asked her students to reflect on what they learned, and responses ranged from “I learned that people are crazy and weird” to “There’s a lot of statistics in the real world.”

Making math interesting and relatable to students’ lives is something Le strives to do in all her classes through project-based learning. Although she transferred from the math department to the engineering department over the summer, she continues to assign practical projects, like making 3D-printed snack boxes in different shapes. 

“Grading is never boring,” Le says. “Students have real problems they have to solve, and you can really assess whether they have learned the concepts.”

Last year, Le was named Woodrow Wilson Teacher of the Year for her commitment to students and leadership among faculty. She was the campus IT expert and organized trainings to help teachers prepare for their evaluations. She also led new teacher orientation and helped educators use the school’s 3D printers for classes.

“We’re not lowering the standard,” Le says. “We’re making sure [students] are well prepared for the future.”

But this year has been hard, even for the teacher of the year. 

“A really big challenge is managing two spaces at once,” Le says. “When I have students who are here and need attention and students on the computer who need help, it’s impossible. I’m like, ‘Who’s here? Who’s calling? Is it a ghost?’”

Le splits the class into groups so they can help each other when she’s working with other students. Most of the design work can be completed virtually or in person on the computer. In a normal year, students would help operate the 3D printers, but she does all the printing now. 

“I learned that you have to have a lot of patience — for students and for yourself,” Le says. “Maybe there’s a concept you can’t get to, and that’s OK. You can incorporate it later into something else. Some things you just have to let go. This year, I just want to make learning fun because it’s been really tough for everyone.”