Math Education: An Inconvenient Truth

sleeper2345 Says:

Aug 15, 2010 - @ostrich67 Would could start by teaching students algorithms that took hundreds of years to develop and hope that they make sense of them. No one can make sense of the traditional multiplication algorithm without an understanding of the partial products algorithm. The traditional multiplication algorithm builds on the partial products algorithm. We could start reading by having students read Shakespeare. That's a better analogy for what we do with mathematics.

sleeper2345 Says:

Aug 15, 2010 - @tubeview72 My son computed 172 - 79 by taking 72 - 79 (-7), then taking 7 away from 100. See the article by mathematician Hyman Bass in Teaching Children Mathematics (Volume: 9 , Issue: 6 , Page: 322-327). This is a more efficient algorithm than the traditional subtraction algorithm. However, my son was not able to use this as he progressed into 4th grade. Also, teaching students the most efficient algorithm first is not the best if the child has little understanding of procedure.

tubeview72 Says:

Aug 17, 2010 - @sleeper2345 I won't dispute it further, I agree it's effective. But does it remain effective with larger problems? In the problem, I can also subtract 9 from 72 and 7 from 16 to get 93. Okay I didn't borrow anything, but it's similar. Either way, you have to learn a method to solve the problem, and should be one you can use again and again. My teachers taught the standards, but only asked us to get the right answer and show our work. If we found a better method we could use it.

5554s5s4 Says:

Aug 19, 2010 - inefficient bullshit, now at the end of my examination i only have 90% of my exam unfinished

MathinColor Says:

Aug 19, 2010 - Everyday Mathematics is not effective. It teaches kids to depend on a calculator. My school district dumped this program after 2 years. It's a good idea to expose kids to alternative algorithms just to show problems can be solved in different ways, but the basics must be the focus first, foremost and most often.

UncleJoey12 Says:

Aug 20, 2010 - @MathinColor Your county dumped EM after 2 years? How long had they adopted it for to begin with? I wonder because my county just adopted it for 7 years. We start it this Monday.... and I hate it already. I just hope my county wakes up and dumps this program FAST!

UncleJoey12 Says:

Aug 20, 2010 - Everyday Math SUCKS. I can NOT believe anyone expects teachers to teach this crap to the kids! We're going to produce a nation of complete idiots.

MathinColor Says:

Aug 22, 2010 - @UncleJoey12 The School Board approved it without consulting the Math Council... it took 2 years for the council to dump it... 7 years???!!! Hang onto those old math books, I have a feeling you'll be using them again. Hey, check out mathincolorcom, I created a simple practical math aid for multiplication factors multiples, etc.

UncleJoey12 Says:

Aug 24, 2010 - @MathinColor We were going to hang on to our regular math books, but the county wanted them back for some reason. They were probably going to sell them to some county in some state some where that they actually wanted their kids to learn math. So we had to give 'em up. You said you all dumped it in 2 years, but how long had your county bought it for to begin with? Did you all buy it for 5 or 7 years, then dump it after 2? Or did you all only buy it for 2 years?

kessy7671 Says:

Aug 24, 2010 - lkmkl

albokid52 Says:

Aug 24, 2010 - this is weird, In NY, in 1-6 grade, calculators are not allowed at ALL, even though we are taught the efficient ways of math like doing the multiplication vertically. Which in this video is looked down upon, Im not sure if that effects my school programs when i was in 4th and 5th grade which was in 2004-2006. Calculators were only introduced in 7th grade and up since we had to do computing that you cannot possibly do with your head. Im not talkin about 107*763 i mean like Tangent and Sin Cos.

MathinColor Says:

Aug 25, 2010 - @UncleJoey12 I'm not sure how many years we bought it for, I just know we dumped it asap. You make a good point that we probably had to buy a minimum of 5 years and "lose money" by getting rid of it. We decided it was more important to have kids learn than "get our money's worth" and keep the program. If you want to dump it, get at least 10 teachers together and raise some hell at a board meeting soon.

sleeper2345 Says:

Aug 25, 2010 - @MathinColor Glad you're providing worksheets that tell kids which numbers are prime. No kid could figure that on his/her own. Actually, these look like some 100s charts used in EDM and Investigations, except the students make them.

jonesey5168 Says:

Aug 25, 2010 - makes sense why the powers that be like a deliberate retardation of basic thinking and logic skills...good expose here

MathinColor Says:

Aug 25, 2010 - @sleeper2345 Look at the Math in Color images a little closer, Negative Nancy- it's about giving a visual to abstract ideas. Sure, 1000s of teachers, school administrators, and PHD's from the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, and Northwestern University who endorse Math in Color must be wrong... look elsewhere for a youtube comment fight.

sleeper2345 Says:

Aug 26, 2010 - @MathinColor So your reasoning is if lots of people think it is right, it must be good. I don't think that passes the logical test that is required. However, enjoy the income!

MathinColor Says:

Aug 26, 2010 - @sleeper2345 "An updated version of the Sieve of Eratosthenes". -Northwestern

luomio Says:

Aug 29, 2010 - proponents of these pointless methods should be hanged.

Nelyami Says:

Aug 29, 2010 - You are a scientist and you only know how to multiply two numbers one way, no? Oh, so you just want to teach one way to the people who can't be scientists, I see now?!?

Nelyami Says:

Aug 29, 2010 - @luomio because you can't do it, lol

mike4ty4 Says:

Aug 30, 2010 - And they can't even do SIX times FOUR without a frigging CALCULATOR in COLLEGE?! Oh my GOSH! This is just insane!

Iv1993 Says:

Aug 30, 2010 - OMG I do that with divisions all the time XD If I can't find the answer, I go around multiplying numbers till I get it XD

Iv1993 Says:

Aug 30, 2010 - @Iv1993 Also, what a bitch Everyday Math is >=O

danesolyntjes Says:

Aug 31, 2010 - "turk" Terk whatever it's called is probably pretty darn good at teaching kids how to use their mental math skills. Did she really not know that 6 can go into 13 two times when she was working out the division one, or are was she just being difficult?

gunchibaiyya Says:

Sep 2, 2010 - Ms. McDermott, all the places you said "I can figure out blahblah" is the actual problem. It's easy for some to figure out just, and rest are afraid of Maths.