111–116 of 116 posts
I just asked my stepdaughter "What is 33 minus 18?" "Because ... 18 plus 18 is 36 ..... it's 18 minus 3 ... 15!"
Isn't it suppose to be: 18 to 20 is 2 20 to 30 is 10 30 to 33 is 3 2 + 10 + 3 = 15 ? Also, how does she know it's 18, plus an additional 18? Why not 18 + 20? What happens if it's 33 minus 21? 21 + 21 is 42... Just curious - but at least she's got her own system that works!
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I’m a parent and I object not because I don’t understand it — it’s not too difficult to pick up — but because it completely misses the why of math. Being able to mentally estimate numbers or do simple arithmetic is a good skill, but having universal algorithms for solving problems and describing the universe is really what math is more about. I can trace my trajectory into computer science all the way back to practic…
> It is the power of the algorithm. My kids are entirely missing that in their common core education... From the article, "the Common Core State Standards in the U.S. still requires student fluency with these algorithms" > Being able to mentally estimate numbers or do simple arithmetic is a good skill It's not just about the ability to estimate or do simple mental arithmetic. Look at this example from the article: "D…
One of the reasons common core math is so controversial is because it's one of these "shared experience" topics for which everyone has personal experience and considers themselves an expert, yet most don't realize that their own experience is probably quite different from nearly everyone else's. And the reason theirs is different is in large part because their mind works differently and they naturally fell into using skills matched to their own strengths and weaknesses. Take 20 people and pair them off into 10 pairs, and have one person in each pair walk the other through how they calculate 876 - 381 in their head. You will 10 different results[1]. The problem with common core is that it teaches a handful of these approaches rather than letting the student develop their own customized approach.
[1] I have actually done this experiment. Of the 8 pairings, I think we had 7 different algorithms. Only two people did something close enough to be called the same thing.
I did A-level maths, I've programmed computers for 30 years since I was a kid. Ive implanted algorithms to calculate solar irradiance varying by orientation, inclination and latitude. I don't understand what my 7yo stepsons maths homework is asking him to do/learn. It's just weird and I'm not sure he always does either, it teaches the how (weirdly) but never the why, I've started teaching him how to understand the pr…
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> It is the power of the algorithm. My kids are entirely missing that in their common core education... From the article, "the Common Core State Standards in the U.S. still requires student fluency with these algorithms" > Being able to mentally estimate numbers or do simple arithmetic is a good skill It's not just about the ability to estimate or do simple mental arithmetic. Look at this example from the article: "D…
Part of the problem though is that not everyone thinks about these things the same way. This is called Pedagogical Content Knowledge -- the meta-knowledge about teaching skills. One of the reasons common core math is so controversial is because it's one of these "shared experience" topics for which everyone has personal experience and considers themselves an expert, yet most don't realize that their own experience is…
The implementation and communication about what Common Core is doing needs a little work. The author mentioned this, and I think he's absolutely right. The fact that math-educated parents like you are reacting negatively to Common Core is a symptom of the plan not being very well explained to parents, even though once people see it clearly, they often agree that it looks like a superior way to teach math.
I guess I'll just add a side note that fostering this appreciation for different approaches might actually be getting more directly at the universality you mentioned above. There's a deeper truth behind the meaning of subtracting two numbers than any one algorithm holds, and perhaps the only way to see it is to be familiar with multiple algorithms.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Part of the problem though is that not everyone thinks about these things the same way. This is called Pedagogical Content Knowledge -- the meta-knowledge about teaching skills. One of the reasons common core math is so controversial is because it's one of these "shared experience" topics for which everyone has personal experience and considers themselves an expert, yet most don't realize that their own experience is…
Common core has an explicit goal of trying to foster an appreciation for different approaches, in complete recognition of what you said - that different people prefer different approaches, and also in complete opposition to what you and I grew up with. Schools used to teach one and only one way. I'm super curious if you have a problem with Common Core as implemented, or if like so many other parents who are scared of…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Common core has an explicit goal of trying to foster an appreciation for different approaches, in complete recognition of what you said - that different people prefer different approaches, and also in complete opposition to what you and I grew up with. Schools used to teach one and only one way. I'm super curious if you have a problem with Common Core as implemented, or if like so many other parents who are scared of…
Well it does come off as insulting and condescending and I don't really feel like pursuing this further.