An End To Math Wars

To end the Math Wars, we need to incorporate key elements of reform into a traditional curriculum. This video summarizes how a 12th grade algebra curriculum has been developed that accomplishes this. Go to www.mathmotivation.com/lessons/lessons.html - the materials are free for public use.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• an
• end
• to
• math
• wars
• mathematics
• reform
• inconvenient
• truth

[WalkaCrookedLine]

"Collaborative group excercises" means 1 or 2 students in the group learn the subject and the rest copy their answers. I fail to see how this is in any way desirable.

[mathmotivation]

@WalkaCrookedLine es, I agree with you if group work is your only means of learning and evaluation. I give the group exercises after doing lecture. And at least through the group work there is a certain amount of enthusiasm shown by some of the class and we can focus on the deductive reasoning aspect of the math (justifying steps, doing proofs, etc). That said, there is only one true way to insure the validity of results: individual closed book/notes exams and quizzes.

[BruceDeitrickPrice]

Let's make sure kids can add, subtract, multiply, and divide. Confidently. THEN you go to more abstract concepts. The lunacy of Reform Math is that they want to abuse young kids with stuff that used to be taught in high school. Reform Math should be called Deform Math.

[mathmotivation]

@BruceDeitrickPrice I wholeheartedly agree! What I am proposing here (and using) is a slightly modified version of the lecture model that still stresses skills but also stresses the deductive nature of mathematics. What I am proposing is more applicable at the junior and senior high school level of mathematics. At the K-6 level, it is still very important to stress skills. I teach at a community college - I see recent high school graduates that can not add 1/4 + 1/3!

[alwaysmc2]

12th grade algebra? That's your problem right there. At my school is is common to take algebra 1 in 8th grade and algebra 2 in 10th grade.

[mathmotivation]

Actually, this is the course that follows Algebra II. In some schools this would be Grade 11 but in many this would be Grade 12.

[lvroberts]

Not enough text and too many images. ;-)

[Gregarious3]

I only liked the music.

[BruceDeitrickPrice]

@mathmotivation You want to save the world? Take the best of Singapore Math, Saxon Math, MathUSee, MathMammouth, etc. and create a common sense program for public school use. In the process, make all kids masters of simple arithmetic. In the process, banish Reform Math and Core Standards from the world. You see the kids you're getting. You know Reform Math was diabolical or, at best, incompetent. The same people are doing Core Standards. Can you stop the madness?

Bruce Deitrick Price

[regimeoftruth]

@BruceDeitrickPrice How can 2+3=5 be emperical, and also a tautology? Your statement is the opposite of a tautology. Google it.

[sleeper2345]

@BruceDeitrickPrice 2 + 3 = 5 is an abstraction/general idea. It is an idea that applies across many contexts. It is not a definition or a tautology. You must develop meaning for "2" "+" "3" "5" and "=." This is not obvious to students, though you assume it is. Our number system (Hindu-Arabic) is quite complex and difficult to understand. Most adults have only a shallow understanding of it and have no idea how many million are in a billion. (See the Andy Rooney excerpt from 60 minutes)

[BruceDeitrickPrice]

@sleeper2345

CONFIDENTLY. That's the essential ingredient.

(The amazing thing to me is the way these people pushing Reform Math like to pretend there are these deep concepts, and kids must drop everything to wrestle with them. 2+3=5 is empirical; it's a definition, a tautology really. There's no concept worth the name.)

[sleeper2345]

@BruceDeitrickPrice "

1 month ago

"Let's make sure kids can add, subtract, multiply, and divide. THEN you go to more abstract concepts." Focusing on computation alone provides little insight. Students are capable of learning to apply the operations at the same time that they learn how to do so. Suggesting that we delay introducing ideas about area until students learn basic facts and procedures is unnecessary when are can serve as a springboard into helping students make sense of basic facts.