<p>I marvel that we can spend 12 years teaching kids math and a very big percentage can’t do fractions, geometry, algebra, percentages, interest calculations, ratios, variations and conversion of units of measure.</p>
<p>Social promotion is a problem and it’s expensive to diagnose and fix deficiencies and reinforcing the stuff learned at home is hard if the home environment is poor. Motivating kids can also be hard. I used to tutor math at BC and someone comes in with a problem - they need review prep for a test, they need help on some homework problems or they don’t get a concept discussed in class. I have to quickly figure out what their problems are and then figure out a way to get them going again. Way back when I didn’t run into the prereq issues that my son has run into in his tutoring. That may have been a result of far more filtering back when I went to college or it might be due to more social promotion. The kids that my son tutored presumably passed the MCAS tests so they at one time knew it well enough to pass that tough exit exam.</p>
<p>“12 years teaching kids math and a very big percentage can’t do fractions, geometry, algebra, percentages, interest calculations, ratios, variations and conversion of units of measure.”
It is not teaching, it is a joke. Good number of kids are so bored with it, that even if it was theri favorite subject, they grew to dislike it a lot. Kids do not like to be bored, there is no excitement in math classes, they are not given anything challenging. For example, trig has to be learned BEFORE HS, so that physcis could be taught at the proper level. Physics cannot be taught without trig., and it is NOT possible to teach physics successfully in one year, you need at least 3. I am talking about HS level,I am not talking about college level. Since they get nothing like this, very many are derailed in college before they even start in engineering. Lucky few realize shortcomings and hire tutors, fewer yet came from immigrant families that contribute to closing gap between HS education and college requirements.</p>
<p>"- It is not teaching, it is a joke. Good number of kids are so bored with it, that even if it was theri favorite subject, they grew to dislike it a lot. Kids do not like to be bored, there is no excitement in math classes, they are not given anything challenging."</p>
<p>Exactly…pages and pages of handouts and drills over the same basic concept in K-6…7 wasted years where the main thing you learn is to hate math.</p>
<p>I’ve been reading standards documents since the 1980s and it seems like the same stuff over and over again. This document is interesting in that it looks at successful models but there may be some things in their systems that aren’t easily transferred to the US.</p>
<p>I don’t necessarily agree with their approach - I think that algebra can be introduced earlier. Numbers and algebra can be introduced in the abstract - it doesn’t have to be concrete though it can be concrete while it’s also presented in the abstract.</p>
<p>It’s hard to compare a parent working back and forth with a child on this stuff with the right materials, along with the classroom environment that’s the product of committees.</p>
<p>However, some concepts from high school math do show up in normal life.</p>
<ul>
<li>Consider how one can understand compound interest.</li>
<li>Consider a carpenter cutting lengths of wood to make an A-frame with specific angles.</li>
<li>Consider trying to line up pieces of wood at a 90-degree angle with only a tape measure and a pencil to help you.</li>
</ul>
<p>I 100% agree with you. I have two teens in highschool and their problem with algebra/middle school math was never being smart enough but rather they never cared about the material because it never actually applied to their life. Maybe instead of force feeding students or waiting until they are “ready”, we just show them how algebra can help them do the things they love to do. One of my good friend’s kid participated in the reelmath challenge ([Reel</a> Math Challenge - A free math video competition brought to you by MATHCOUNTS](<a href=“http://www.reelmath.org%5DReel”>http://www.reelmath.org)) when he was in 8th grade. What the kid did was create a video showing how math applied to his life. Although he didn’t win the contest (there are thousands of entries), it really did spark his interest in math.</p>
<p>I don’t think anyone is arguing that some level of higher math, for instance algebra and geometry, is not incredibly useful. I think the point is that the things you are talking about figuring out do not require a calculus class. Most people do not need calculus.</p>
<p>History, geography, economics and other subjects need to be taught in HS. They are part of education that we are paying for (the most expansive in a world, BTW).
Teh point is how these classes taught. All classes (yes, including English), require analytical skills. History is not just a collection of dates, names and places, history is a huge lesson for future generations. Without analytical skills, person cannot make this connections, cannot create a picture of what has been and is going on. Pure abstract analytical skills, skills that are removed from specifics of any subject, aspect of life are taught by math, that is if the math is taught correctly and not just a boring collection of formulas that mean nothing in person’s life. Nope, this is NOT the goal of teaching math, you can get the formula from internet.</p>