LearningArithmeticinthe21stCenturyThomasCavalier

LearningArithmeticinthe21stCenturyThomasCavalier

To-Do

Develop principled arguments (backed up by: research, empirical findings, your personal experience, hypotheses about resulting cognitive developments, and the topics discussed in class) which of the four positions YOU will favor!

Principled argument which of the four positions YOU will favor!

Learning Arithmetic in the 21st Century: Option 2

The proposed plan for the Boulder Valley School Board is to keep the curriculum the same, make students learn arithmetic, multiplication tables, long division, drawing square root by hands, etc and then upon mastery allow the use of calculators.  The purpose of this would be to get students to learn the necessary concepts and skills required to solve mathematical problems by hand. If calculators were given to students when they first started learning math, problems such as lack of experience,calculator dependency, inability to solve simple equations, and frustration when no calculator around can occur(K-12 Techsters).  Once mastery of the needed skills is complete the use of a calculator will then be allowed. Using calculators with the necessary skills helps students realize that calculators can help you but are not always necessary to perform the task(SEDL).  Calculators can even help you to apply those skills much faster and achieve a higher level of mathematical skill (SEDL).  Mastering the skills and knowledge of mathematics before being allowed use calculators is the way to do it. Think of it this way, the skills are the training wheels of a bike and the calculator is the big boys bike that you've always wanted but, you can't get the big boys bike till you master the bike with training wheels first.

Thomas Cavalier

SEDL, Quick Takes:Calculators in the Classroom, March 1998, http://www.sedl.org/scimath/quicktakes/qt9803.html

K-12 Techsters, Calculators in the Classroom, July 18, 2010,  http://medt3401.blogspot.com/2010/07/calculators-in-classroom_18.html