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Kuro
Advanced Newbie
Joined: 19 Oct 2005
Posts: 50
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 Posted: 19 Apr 2006 03:43:28 pm Post subject: |
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DigiTan wrote: You can usually tell you have a good instructor when they interact with the class. Stuff like vivid examples, pacing around the room, or asking you questions to make sure you were paying attention. I forget what that style's called, but I'd image it's more popular in European classes than here. In my highschool, it was mostly grim worksheets, worksheets, worksheets. It really boosts conceptual knowledge, which is the stuff that makes students competitive.
[post="75959"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]
There was a study about that done in 1996 I think that compared high school math (particularly geometry) teachers in Germany, Japan, and the United States. I found a book about it at my local library, and it has many case studies that focus on the point suggested in this thread. |
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koresho
Advanced Newbie
Joined: 24 Mar 2006
Posts: 53
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| Posted: 19 Apr 2006 04:53:23 pm Post subject: |
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| I agree with Tiberious726. I like that, really I do. |
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DigiTan
Unregistered HyperCam 2
Super Elite (Last Title)
Joined: 10 Nov 2003
Posts: 4468
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| Posted: 19 Apr 2006 07:43:55 pm Post subject: |
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| I think the biggest problem with the class setting is the fact that everyone's lumped together. It sets up an environment where the least-motivated and worst-behaved students can have top influence over how everybody learns. Also, there was way too much thoughtless busywork. Like I said if it were just calculators, we would only be behind in math. Actually, I was pretty satisfied with the calculator policy at my highschool. Usually, after geometry, the problems are so specific those things don't help much anyway. |
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Plague
Member
Joined: 28 Mar 2006
Posts: 242
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| Posted: 19 Apr 2006 08:40:04 pm Post subject: |
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calculators are just there to make things faster, like programs are just to make procceses even faster. if you dont know how to do something to begin with, a calculator isnt going to help you much anyway.
Using calcs in math allows you to progress to more complex things faster becuase you dont waste time trying to compute 36.23*24/32. You can spend you time learning trig identities or something more usefull instead. (note the small bit of sarcasm there) |
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IAmACalculator
In a state of quasi-hiatus
Know-It-All
Joined: 21 Oct 2005
Posts: 1571
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| Posted: 19 Apr 2006 08:45:34 pm Post subject: |
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Plague wrote: if you dont know how to do something to begin with, a calculator isnt going to help you much anyway.
[post="76152"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]
Not necessarily. It doesn't take much knowledge of factoring to type [font="Courier New"]factor( on the 89. |
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DarkerLine
ceci n'est pas une |
Super Elite (Last Title)
Joined: 04 Nov 2003
Posts: 8328
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| Posted: 19 Apr 2006 09:18:00 pm Post subject: |
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| If you know what a factor is, you know how to find one, a calculator just does all the repetitive work. |
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Tiberious726
Advanced Member
Joined: 07 Oct 2005
Posts: 284
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| Posted: 20 Apr 2006 03:49:45 pm Post subject: |
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DarkerLine wrote: If you know what a factor is, you know how to find one, a calculator just does all the repetitive work.
[post="76164"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]
percisly; i thinkt that once someone can factor by hand or at least know what a factor really is then calculators aren't a problem whatsoever; however there are many people who don't and simply rely on the calculator; or in the days before calculators, magic formulas that are accepted becuase the teacher said they were good; no proof no understanding of why it works; nothing
i also agree with digitan |
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Fr0stbyte124
Advanced Newbie
Joined: 26 Jan 2006
Posts: 98
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| Posted: 21 Apr 2006 03:39:37 pm Post subject: |
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In my school district, 5th graders take 11 weeks learning long division, which has little usefulness for four or five years until polynomials are added to the mix. I'm all for knowing how to solve things by hand, but that amount of time for one operation just seems a little excessive.
There are plenty better things to do with math than spend your time on the arithmetic. |
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Plague
Member
Joined: 28 Mar 2006
Posts: 242
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| Posted: 21 Apr 2006 09:10:12 pm Post subject: |
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i never understood factoring very well, i tried making a factoring prgm for the 83+ but failed. i cant factor without the 89. i just dont understand it. im just stupid i guess  |
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programmer_to_be
Jesus is my Lord and Saviour.
Elite
Joined: 07 Feb 2006
Posts: 755
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| Posted: 21 Apr 2006 09:26:50 pm Post subject: |
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| Just because you can't factor too good, doesn't mean your stupid. Just practice more. |
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thornahawk
μολών λαβέ
Active Member
Joined: 27 Mar 2005
Posts: 569
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| Posted: 22 Apr 2006 04:18:53 am Post subject: |
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All I'll say is that calculators are only a means to an end. Know that calculators were also made by humans, and as such, they are not infallible. Learn how to check if you're getting reasonable answers. ;)
thornahawk |
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DarkerLine
ceci n'est pas une |
Super Elite (Last Title)
Joined: 04 Nov 2003
Posts: 8328
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| Posted: 22 Apr 2006 04:23:45 pm Post subject: |
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Fr0stbyte124 wrote: In my school district, 5th graders take 11 weeks learning long division, which has little usefulness for four or five years until polynomials are added to the mix. I'm all for knowing how to solve things by hand, but that amount of time for one operation just seems a little excessive.
There are plenty better things to do with math than spend your time on the arithmetic.
[post="76349"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post] ...division is useful by itself? |
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Fr0stbyte124
Advanced Newbie
Joined: 26 Jan 2006
Posts: 98
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| Posted: 26 Apr 2006 04:58:20 pm Post subject: |
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At that point in time, its a quarter of all the math we knew, so we all figured it's probably important for some reason. The point is that people end up dumb because the schools have strange priorities and waste our best learning years with idiotic games and activities and lies about the pilgrims and Columbus.
Did I get off-topic? I can't tell for sure...
And I hated coloring
And our real music program starts in 6th grade
And now we're all dumb
And that makes me sad
And I don't live in Kansas, but there's a whole other issue
Though it's probably as bad for other reasons |
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Super Speler
Super Awesome Dude
Calc Guru
Joined: 28 Nov 2005
Posts: 1391
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| Posted: 26 Apr 2006 05:34:48 pm Post subject: |
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Quote: At that point in time, its a quarter of all the math we knew, so we all figured it's probably important for some reason. The point is that people end up dumb because the schools have strange priorities and waste our best learning years with idiotic games and activities and lies about the pilgrims and Columbus.
This expresses so many of my veiws. First of all, Columbus didn't discover the America's (though he was the first to bring back the natives to sell as slaves), Leif Erecson did. Second of all, Lincoln never freed any slaves! The emancipation proclomation was there to prevent revolt!
The fact that the forein language department teaches you how to say cat in a dozen languages at my old school but not how to say I have a cat in one seems pointless.
They should teach basic algebra as soon as possible! Plus whats up with memorizing multiplication tables! That should come on it's own, not through staying up all night trying to memorize 4x5!
Plus books like "My Brother Sam is Dead" are not something you want kids to read if you feel they have any hope of ever enjoying reading which is really the goal!
Oh, and Art class in 2'nd grade is taken way to seriously. Not that it isn't important but rather then learning how to draw a flower-put let the kids play with clay for goodness sakes!
This is the end of my moderatly off topic rant... |
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Tiberious726
Advanced Member
Joined: 07 Oct 2005
Posts: 284
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| Posted: 26 Apr 2006 06:31:31 pm Post subject: |
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Super Speler wrote: They should teach basic algebra as soon as possible! Plus whats up with memorizing multiplication tables! That should come on it's own, not through staying up all night trying to memorize 4x5!
[post="77102"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]
yes; this is another ciritical problem i have found with the education system; people think math is memorizing; so they memorize the comminity property and so on; they even memorize that you are allowed to mulityply or add to both sides of the equation; but how many of them realize that that is because the 2 sides are equal so all you have to do is keep the equality; the theory should be further delved into; also in eucliean geometry classes it should be about logic not shapes; there is too much focus on the shape while the reason the class is taught is the logic, if you want to learn shapes then anaylical geometry is so much more powerful; euclidean geometry is about LOGIC how long is it going to take the teacher to realize that? |
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Math and Science => Technology & Calculator Open Topic
