88
votes
Why is learning mathematics compulsory?
Questions like this, or variants (from students, the notorious "when will I use this in real life") seem to be pretty common, and I'm always a little surprised, because the unstated premise - that ...
- 11.6k
36
votes
In what curricula are "rectangles" defined so as to exclude squares?
I cannot answer the OP's question about cross-cultural/international perspectives, but here is a historical perspective that may be helpful. The issue here (whether the category "rectangles"...
- 17.3k
29
votes
Why is learning mathematics compulsory?
The OP may be interested in the controversial 2012 article by Andrew Hacker in the NYTimes:
Is Algebra Necessary?
Here is one reply, by Peter Flom:
A reply to Andrew Hacker. His closing remarks:
...
- 29.5k
29
votes
Should LaTeX be taught in high school?
This is not an answer to the posed question, but only an
anecdote. This semester, teaching US college students (Discrete & Computational Geometry), I prepared all my assignments in LaTeX, and ...
- 29.5k
21
votes
Are kindergartners supposed to be steered from squares being rectangles?
Kindergartners are generally at an early stage of geometric development, in which shapes are recognized by how well they resemble prototypical images, rather than by whether or not they conform to a ...
- 17.3k
20
votes
Accepted
Is there a more telling name for "Calculus 2"?
In my job, I evaluate university math courses for transfer equivalency on a regular basis. In the US, "Calculus 1" typically refers to single variable differential calculus up to the fundamental ...
- 10.1k
20
votes
Accepted
Content for a 40-minute lecture on graph theory for high schoolers
I suggest you discuss the Seven bridges of Königsberg problem (the problem that essentially started the field of graph theory), then discuss the Three utilities problem. For each, discuss the problem ...
- 10.8k
19
votes
Accepted
Co-curricular lessons between geometry and chemistry?
One angle you could look at is molecular geometry. Not really my subject area but a couple of examples:
Organic molecules can have different chiralities. That means that while one is the mirror image ...
- 1,941
18
votes
Why is learning mathematics compulsory?
Many people think that the clientele of our public school system is the students. Others act as if the clientele were the parents of the students.
Those people are wrong. The client is the citizenry ...
- 317
16
votes
Why is learning mathematics compulsory?
I'll make some observations from a Western perspective (which may or may resonate with a Chinese student, say). Consider: Mathematics has been at the forefront of all education forever -- since long ...
- 24.3k
15
votes
Should LaTeX be taught in high school?
I don't think it should be a base skill for students in general. Have held jobs in engineering, chemistry, military, and finance and never needed it. Nor did my colleagues.
Didn't need it for a ...
- 159
14
votes
Should we teach trigonometric substitution?
In reality, I think this is not the most important topic, and if I was designing a curriculum from scratch, I would probably omit it.
We rarely have that luxury however. In my state, for example, ...
- 24.3k
13
votes
Accepted
Pedagogical Purpose in Making Students Do Problems in A Less Efficient Way First
Yes.
The primary reason in my mind is that you want to have multiple procedures with which you can double-check work later. Knowing only a single procedure makes for very fragile understanding; on ...
- 24.3k
13
votes
Why is set theory not taught at the outset of math education?
Not a complete answer (could there be one?), but too long for a comment.
why is it [Set Theory] not being taught at the very outset of math education?
It has been tried, most likely still is in ...
- 271
12
votes
How early to start "abstract" math education, or, How to prevent smart kids from never getting exposed to math?
Math circles are an attempt to bring the beauty of math to young people. My book, Playing With Math: Stories from Math Circles, Homeschoolers, and Passionate Teachers is an attempt to bring the joy of ...
- 20.1k
12
votes
Why do standard geometry textbooks not start with trigonometry?
If you really want to understand why the curriculum is structured the way it is, and how it got that way, you might want to read a brief history of the discourse around geometry education for the past ...
- 17.3k
12
votes
Why is learning mathematics compulsory?
Underwood Dudley answers the question "What is mathematics education for?" in this article from 2010 (Notices of the American Mathematical Society, vol. 57, no. 5, pp. 608-613) (even though ...
- 10.8k
12
votes
Content for a 40-minute lecture on graph theory for high schoolers
I study pursuit-evasion games on graphs, so I will recommend using the cops & robbers game as a way to introduce graph theoretic terminology, concepts, and examples. It should also keep the tone ...
- 10.7k
11
votes
Is there a more telling name for "Calculus 2"?
The course titles "Calculus 1", "Calculus 2", etc. are not meaningful terms outside of the specific institutions where there are courses with these titles. These are names of classes, and not some ...
- 7,485
11
votes
How should I introduce the Chain Rule
What is difficult about the chain rule is the function concept, more specifically the composition of functions. Notation that hides or leaves implicit the composition of functions causes a great deal ...
- 5,728
11
votes
Why is learning mathematics compulsory?
Because
many high school students, especially those who are keen on pursuing
the humanities, they do not see any point in studying Mathematics for
the rest of their schooling life, or how any ...
- 219
11
votes
Should LaTeX be taught in high school?
This is clearly an opinion based question. I will answer based on my experience and opinion.
No, LaTeX should not be taught at high school. It is a skill that is costly to learn with essentially no ...
- 218
10
votes
Is Calculus Necessary?
Society always benefits when new mathematical tools are developed to get insights into the world around us. There is little doubt that Calculus has helped change the quality of the lives we can lead ...
- 1,872
10
votes
How should I introduce the Chain Rule
The intuition here is basically that of Ben Crowell's answer, and that kind of intuitive explanation might be worth going through first. What I want to show is the kind of activity you can explore ...
- 351
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