I am in a unique position of being highly passionate about math, and loving to work with kids of all ages. Middle school is my favorite level, though most people upon hearing that exclaim “WHY??!” In my unique position, I’ve seen math fads come and go. I’ve seen politicians get passionate about math education (mostly because we’re way behind the curve compared to the rest of the world). I’ve seen administrative-types develop curriculum that will “cure us” of our math problems – people who haven’t been in the classroom since before I was born. I’ve been in every level of a class that you can imagine (primary, elementary, middle high, high school, college) as both a student and an instructor. Here is my professional opinion: Our students are lacking the foundational base needed for higher-level mathematics.
Now, I know what you’re thinking – “the drill-and-kill method didn’t work on me, why would it work on my students?” My theory is that we haven’t really gotten away from the drill-and-kill method, and it’s killing us. We just changed the way “drill-and-kill” looks. Ask yourself – How do I add fractions? (I know, the “f”-word!) Most of you would say (I hope) that you need to find a common denominator, add the numerators, and you’re done. But, do you know why we do that? I bet if you thought about it, you’d be able to figure out the reasoning behind our procedure. How about 2-digit multiplication – why do we need a place-holder? Because that’s how we were taught to do it, and that’s just the way it is? (Are you starting to see my point?)
Many of the teachers that we have in elementary school – while competent teachers – are not trained enough in math education, and therefore end up teaching things the way they were taught, perpetuating the “drill-and-kill” method. Many suffered through elementary math methods class in college (I know, I tutored many of them) and went on to teach the way they were taught regardless. I don’t blame them – they have 3 or 4 other subjects to worry about as well, not to mention the character development that is important to incorporate into their learning. They don’t have the time to spend on developing math comprehension – not when English (reading mostly) takes up half the instruction time, and the almighty New York State Tests must be given in May, which teachers are more worried about this year than ever before.
Another wrench thrown into the mathematics education problem machine is the curriculum, that is fueled by the standards. Elementary students now need to start trying to understand algebra concepts, as well as probability and geometry. It’s hard enough to explain algebra to a 7th grader, let alone a 4th grader that barely has his multiplication tables memorized. If we instead focused on more basic comprehension of arithmetic in the lower grades, we would have the foundation the secondary teachers need to be more effective with their specific subject areas.
My proposal is this: since we cannot readily change the Common Core State Standards – that EVERYONE is using as a model – we should better train our teachers in the math concepts they are required to teach. There is no such thing as “math magic” and those that believe there is are just kidding themselves. If we can communicate better between elementary and secondary staff, the secondary expectations can be better realized by the elementary teachers. In the same way, the secondary teachers need to realize that the elementary teachers are being pulled in many directions already. While they may strive their hardest to get students to the level of expectation of the secondary teachers, in some cases something needs to be sacrificed to maintain sanity. If we have a better understanding of each other, we can be a more united front in the front-lines of education.