I know I said I was going to leave. I got angry. I'm making an exception.
I feel sorry for the financially and culturally disadvantaged kids under the proposed system change who would never have the chance to be introduced to diverse academic topics and even have a shot at research or well-paid jobs, most of which require the basic numeracy practiced in the "theoretical math" he's displeased with. The rich will keep tutoring their kids and gliding into Harvard. The poorer will be less screwed over by the system, perhaps, but lose access to their culture. I am working as a math tutor teaching 13-year-olds and college students basic arithmetic thanks to the point of view that all that math stuff is a waste of time out in the real world, so the kid can just have a calculator whenever they want one. Now they're finding out that when they need a basic number sense to do things out in the world, they're totally screwed and have to, I repeat, learn basic adding skills as a teenager or adult when it is much, MUCH harder. These are the rich kids from areas like Berkeley and Los Angeles who can afford private schools. There is a SERIOUS problem.
What we need to understand is that the elementary math education in the school is not actually about "mental math" per se. It is about gaining a sense of, and fluency with, numbers in general, which is evidenced by the ability to do quick mental arithmetic. This is a valuable skill. No, you do not actually need to be able to read to be a successful adult. It helps, though. Understanding how your number system works and getting a good grasp of basic algebra is also extremely helpful.
Frankly, this point of view makes me furious. If you want to argue that we should teach the things he mentioned in addition to everything deemed pointless, then I agree. People should have basic life skills. Around here, there is a one-semester required course that covers the basics of all of the topics he wanted, without needing to scrimp on basic math, science, and culture. Health is taught as part of the physical education curriculum. We learn about the legal system in history class. I learned how to file a tax return as a fifth grader in math class. I learned to balance a budget in sixth grade as, again, part of math class. We learned about how to compound interest in... AGAIN, math class, for precalculus. Physics? Math class! The game theoretic ideas you use to run a business? It was math class. Engineering and design projects... one more time, math class. Complaining about mathematics being taught poorly is one thing, but saying "Okay, I haven't found a use for it, so we ought to get rid of it" is totally asinine and betrays a disturbing lack of thought on the matter.
There are natural positions for all of the knowledge he wishes he had, where they can add, rather than detract, from the learning as a useful application. Advocating the removal of theory in exclusive favor of application is idiotic.
Otherwise? It's an offensive continuation of the concept that offering children beauty and interesting things to think about (and tools to think about them) is categorically unnecessary. The bright and sensitive will continue to be fucked over and educated chiefly in the notion that their needs don't exist. It's important to realize that folks who really don't need or want the abstract knowledge exist as well, who can be better educated by making parts of the curriculum more concrete, but all I'm seeing here is a staggering lack of sensitivity or thought on his part.
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Topic: Calm and Cool Progressive Discussion Thread (Read 1275423 times)