Do you ever feel like “Frustrated Parent” and “Douglas, The Check Writer” both of whom took to social media to complain about the new Common Core Math standards? Their posts sparked a lot of laughter and head nods because so many parents in Parker, Jefferson County and Denver are confused and frustrated with the math their kids are bringing home.
At Mathnasium of Parker, we understand your frustration. Change is hard. But “Frustrated Parent” and “Douglas, The Check Writer” are part of the problem instead of part of the solution. Math instruction in the 70’s, 80’s, 90’s, and early 2000’s focused so much on showing kids how to get the right answer to a certain type of problem that key components of math instruction were ignored.
The Problem
For years American students have trailed students in other developed nations in math. In 2012, students in 34 developed countries took a test known as Program for International Student Assessment (PISA). Of the 34 developed countries the US ranked 27th. This is nothing new. The United States has lagged behind other countries in math for decades.
The PISA analysis of US strengths says US students do fairly well at “Handling directly manageable formulae – requiring students to use a formula provided, e.g. inserting numbers for variables, and do some easy calculation. The formulae can be used directly, without any re-structuring.”
Continuing, the analysis of the PISA results indicate US students have a particular weakness “where the students have to use the mathematics they have learned in a well-founded manner. Given that even in more demanding tasks some basic skills are nevertheless needed, an implication of the findings is that much more focus is needed on higher-order activities, such as those involving mathematical modeling (understanding real world situations, translating them into mathematical models, and interpreting mathematical results), without neglecting the basic skills needed for these activities.”
Basically, students in the U.S. do basic arithmetic fairly well when they know how to apply a certain method, but they really struggle with knowing what to do when they have to do higher order thinking. Many STEM careers require higher order thinking and reasoning skills in math. At Mathnasium of Parker we don’t just focus on basic arithmetic. We encourage students to use creative thought and in depth analysis and to achieve understanding.
The Solution
The educational community is trying to close the math gap and Common Core Math Standards is part of the solution. You may want to read our article about Common Core to help understand what Common Core Math Standards are all about. Another part of the solution is changing the mindset of math teachers and students. You can read our article for more information about how mindset encourages mathematical reasoning.
Are You Satisfied with Mediocre Math Skills?
Even if you feel that you were able to make a nice life for yourself without being at the top of the international math pyramid, the same may not be true for your children. Your children will be competing for market share and jobs in an increasingly global economy. If they do not have the math skills necessary to perform a task, someone in China surely will. Their average math student outperforms our top math students. For a more detailed analysis read this article.
What Can Frustrated Parents in Parker Do?
First, recognize that just because you did math a certain way, doesn’t make it the best way. After all, many parents rode bikes without helmets as a kid but they insist that their children wear helmets. The poet and author Maya Angelou stated, “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”
“Frustrated Parent” and “Douglas, The Check Writer” could have recognized that their frustration at not understanding the way their children are doing math doesn’t necessarily mean the math instruction is wrong. In fact, both of them failed to demonstrate any understanding of the mathematical approach. “Douglas, The Check Writer” was struggling to use a ten frame. A ten frame looks like this.
You can see how it is used in this video. It is a very useful tool to visually identify certain properties about numbers and to help children manipulate the numbers quickly. Young children must progress from concrete objects to abstract numbers, but it is often a struggle. There is no reason a child should wait to do develop mathematical thinking skills until they are able to do it using the written symbols of numbers. We don’t wait for a child to be able to read independently before introducing stories! Before “Douglas, The Check Writer” criticized the method he could have learned how it worked and tried to understand its value.
“Frustrated Parent” didn’t understand the question or the method. The question was to help Jack find his mistake. Evaluating and learning from mistakes is a key component of the growth mindset. Errors give people a chance to evaluate their thinking and their methods and to learn from them. The number line is another visual tool that students use to see how numbers relate to each other. If you look at the error Jack made on the paper, you can see that he subtracted 60 instead of 6. That is an indication that Jack does not understand place value. That is a big problem. Error analysis is a critical component to mathematical reasoning.
The Mathnasium Way
At Mathnasium of Parker we recognize parents can’t spend all their time researching common core and the new math tools. That’s our job! We have been teaching math for a long time, so it isn’t all that new to us. The important point is we teach in ways that make sense to kids. We know the various methods that are out there to help kids understand math and can support them when we help children with homework, however, our proven methodology gets children to understanding and mastery. We would love to help your children feel confident in math and prepare them for the world of tomorrow.
Call us today to see how we can make math make sense to your child. (303) 840-1184
This article was written by and owned by Cuttlefish Copywriting. It is copyright protected. Mathnasium of Parker has permission to use it. Other Mathnasium locations should contact Heather at [email protected] before using it.
