Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Girls and math
I have heard for years that girls are not supposed to be good at Math. Hmph .... can't tell it by me! I am a girl and I am good at Math. And I was a teacher for 22 years and saw just as many girls excel in Mathematics as boys. I also saw just as many females fail in Mathematics as males. I believe the sexual divide no longer exists in the area of success (or failure) in Mathematics.
Still .... there does exist a barrier to being smart .... it is just not considered to be "cool". Stupid is "cool". Acting like an idiot in class is "cool". And "cool" is what you want to be in Middle School. Even if you are smart or really good at something, you don't want to let too many people know about it. People might call you a "geek" or a "nerd" and that is not "cool".
Enter Winnie Cooper of the old TV show The Wonder Years. Winnie Cooper was played by an actress named Danica McKellar. Danica, in real life, went on to college and received a degree in Mathematics from UCLA. Danica is decidedly "COOL". And she has decided to make mathematics cool for others .... particularly for middle school girls.
Danica has written two books .... Math Doesn't Suck and her most recent book Kiss My Math .... two middle-schooler attractive titles for sure! I have not read these books yet, but I did just place an order for them, and I will let you know what I think when I do get them read. You can read reviews of the books on those Amazon.com links I supplied.
Thanks, Danica, for caring about this misunderstood and difficult age-group. Anything that you can do to make math and learning cool for middle-schoolers is okay by me!
Here is a link to a video of Danica being interviewed on the TODAY show ... Danica and Roker. Al Roker kind of missed the point .... but welcome to the way the world works.
If you have read the books, let me know what you think. I'll keep you posted on what I think.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Math and IQ revisited
I recently received two comments on my article High School Math and IQ and the only way to have to reply back is via another post. Plus ... I would like to comment on the comments.
Both of the comments are from the same person and they are as follows:
Zdravko Botev: This article is ridiculous. It is likearguing that people do not need to learn to read becasue some jobs do not require any reading, only physical exertion. The purpose of teaching science and getting a solid education in all areas of human knowledge is that an individual can be a responsible voter and participate in public life. How can we expect to deal with climate change, energy and all spread of diseases if people do not know their physics , chemistry (all of which require deep knowedge of mathematics).Shame on anyone who want to let ignorance and stupidity let loose. I am shocked that a maths teacher has written this article. I am a university lecturer in mathematics. December 18, 12:14 AM
And ...
Zdravko Botev: The reason that these students cannot balance their debts and credit cards is becasue they lack the analytical skills and ligical thinking that are ONLY developed by studying mathematics! People have to study mathematics not because they need the mathematical facts but becasue it makes them smarter and physically changes the organization of their brains. It is an essential skill and the school system can never have enough of it. Our very survival as species depends on it December 18, 12:17 AM
My response ....
Dear Mr. Botev,
I can tell by your use of the the word "maths" plural that you were not educated in Mathematics here in America. That leads me to believe that you have no idea about the basis of my argument. Since you are now a university lecturer in mathematics, can I assume you have seen the level of students which American High Schools are producing and their serious weaknesses in the area of Mathematics?
I am NOT advocating not teaching Mathematics. In fact, quite the opposite. I believe every student should have a good solid grasp of Algebra I and Geometry. But it is there that I draw the line. By forcing every student in American High Schools to take and pass Algebra II and Pre-Calculus, all that is happening is the rigor of these classes is being destroyed. In order to have a solid passing rate, teachers are watering down the material. Take a look at the recently released Algebra II textbooks and you will see what I mean. Even the textbooks are teaching to the lowest student and thus pulling everything DOWN, not UP. If teachers want more rigor in their classes they are having to pull work from older discontinued textbooks. Many teachers aren't even using the new textbooks which their schools have paid thousands of dollars for because they don't contain the quality level of mathematics which was taught in the 70's an 80's. They do have lots of pretty pictures, though.
Yes there are Honors and AP classes and I certainly hope that these courses are rigorous. Sadly, so many American students don't want to work that hard, so they take the regular level Math courses, which have been watered down. Students who truly do have the ability to learn mathematics are being allowed to take the easier classes because their parents simply do not push them enough. Meanwhile, all students regardless of IQ and ability are being made to take higher level math and physics and these classes are not the quality classes they were BECAUSE of that fact.
It is my belief that American high schools are failing their students because they do not teach them the mathematics of the financial world. In fact, we don't even teach the basics of finances anymore. Read more about this. I am all for one of the required 4 years of mathematics being Math of Money. And it does need to be more rigorous mathematically than simply teaching how to fill out a check correctly.
I truly understand your concern, Mr. Botev. I also ask you to look back at your own Mathematics education. Was every child your age from your neighborhood in Math class with you? Were people around you in school constantly whining about high failure rates? Did students in your classes consider schooling to be a huge burden and just something to be done because someone was making them be there? Or was schooling a privilege to you and your fellow classmates?
Imagine your Pre-calculus class being filled with ADHD kids who have decided to stop taking their medication, gangsters who believe acting ignorant is cool, 18 year olds who's mommas still do everything for them, cheerleaders and football players who "have to pass" to stay eligible or they will "just die". Welcome to the American Classroom.
Both of the comments are from the same person and they are as follows:
Zdravko Botev: This article is ridiculous. It is likearguing that people do not need to learn to read becasue some jobs do not require any reading, only physical exertion. The purpose of teaching science and getting a solid education in all areas of human knowledge is that an individual can be a responsible voter and participate in public life. How can we expect to deal with climate change, energy and all spread of diseases if people do not know their physics , chemistry (all of which require deep knowedge of mathematics).Shame on anyone who want to let ignorance and stupidity let loose. I am shocked that a maths teacher has written this article. I am a university lecturer in mathematics. December 18, 12:14 AM
And ...
Zdravko Botev: The reason that these students cannot balance their debts and credit cards is becasue they lack the analytical skills and ligical thinking that are ONLY developed by studying mathematics! People have to study mathematics not because they need the mathematical facts but becasue it makes them smarter and physically changes the organization of their brains. It is an essential skill and the school system can never have enough of it. Our very survival as species depends on it December 18, 12:17 AM
My response ....
Dear Mr. Botev,
I can tell by your use of the the word "maths" plural that you were not educated in Mathematics here in America. That leads me to believe that you have no idea about the basis of my argument. Since you are now a university lecturer in mathematics, can I assume you have seen the level of students which American High Schools are producing and their serious weaknesses in the area of Mathematics?
I am NOT advocating not teaching Mathematics. In fact, quite the opposite. I believe every student should have a good solid grasp of Algebra I and Geometry. But it is there that I draw the line. By forcing every student in American High Schools to take and pass Algebra II and Pre-Calculus, all that is happening is the rigor of these classes is being destroyed. In order to have a solid passing rate, teachers are watering down the material. Take a look at the recently released Algebra II textbooks and you will see what I mean. Even the textbooks are teaching to the lowest student and thus pulling everything DOWN, not UP. If teachers want more rigor in their classes they are having to pull work from older discontinued textbooks. Many teachers aren't even using the new textbooks which their schools have paid thousands of dollars for because they don't contain the quality level of mathematics which was taught in the 70's an 80's. They do have lots of pretty pictures, though.
Yes there are Honors and AP classes and I certainly hope that these courses are rigorous. Sadly, so many American students don't want to work that hard, so they take the regular level Math courses, which have been watered down. Students who truly do have the ability to learn mathematics are being allowed to take the easier classes because their parents simply do not push them enough. Meanwhile, all students regardless of IQ and ability are being made to take higher level math and physics and these classes are not the quality classes they were BECAUSE of that fact.
It is my belief that American high schools are failing their students because they do not teach them the mathematics of the financial world. In fact, we don't even teach the basics of finances anymore. Read more about this. I am all for one of the required 4 years of mathematics being Math of Money. And it does need to be more rigorous mathematically than simply teaching how to fill out a check correctly.
I truly understand your concern, Mr. Botev. I also ask you to look back at your own Mathematics education. Was every child your age from your neighborhood in Math class with you? Were people around you in school constantly whining about high failure rates? Did students in your classes consider schooling to be a huge burden and just something to be done because someone was making them be there? Or was schooling a privilege to you and your fellow classmates?
Imagine your Pre-calculus class being filled with ADHD kids who have decided to stop taking their medication, gangsters who believe acting ignorant is cool, 18 year olds who's mommas still do everything for them, cheerleaders and football players who "have to pass" to stay eligible or they will "just die". Welcome to the American Classroom.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Tuesday, December 09, 2008
Sunday, December 07, 2008
Saturday, December 06, 2008
Friday, December 05, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
