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-----Original Message-----the younger
From: Forum for Physics Educators [mailto:PHYS-
L@list1.ucc.nau.edu] On Behalf Of Hugh Haskell
Sent: Wednesday, September 14, 2005 2:56 PM
To: PHYS-L@LISTS.NAU.EDU
Subject: Re: student mathematical capability
At 12:24 -0600 9/14/05, SSHS KPHOX wrote:
and sooner
However, as I have watched students get pushed to achieve more
( and there are many that can) I find the early teaching in
are reallygrades focusing on an algorithmic approach and foregoing thedevelopment
of real understanding. I am not convinced that all students
but notready to master algebra in grade 8 at age 13 or 14. Many can
allstuck in
by any means. I should not be surprised.I suspect that this is mostly due to the fact that teachers of
mathematics at the middle-school level are themselves mostly
an algorithmic mode. If students were taught from the verybeginning
to understand why 2+2=4, etc., rather than merely beingrequired to
memorize that fact, or more importantly, why 2*2=4 and 4/2=2,they
wouldn't have nearly some much trouble transitioning to thetype of
math that requires this sort of thinking. But to do thatrequires a
complete restructuring of how we teach early math, and afterthe "new
math" debacle in the 60s, it is unlikely that will happen anytime
soon. However, if we did do some restructuring and the studentssaw
why multiplication works, as a form of repeated addition, Irather
think it would become much easier for them to then memorize theof.
multiplication tables that we all decry their lack of knowledge
they
Hugh
--
Hugh Haskell
<mailto:haskell@ncssm.edu>
<mailto:hhaskell@mindspring.com>
(919) 467-7610
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