4 ms·
There seems to be an idea, which I find deeply odd, that kids don’t need to be taught something once an alternative appears: arithmetic —> calculators coins ->
by bambataa 6y ago
There seems to be an idea, which I find deeply odd, that kids don’t need to be taught something once an alternative appears:
arithmetic —> calculators
coins -> contactless
cursive -> typing
I just find it bizarre how quickly people are willing to throw things out, leaving children utterly reliant on the new tech.
- cannam 6y agoYou've just reminded me how wonderful the principle of the slide rule appeared, when I eventually encountered one after a childhood using calculators.
- zelos 6y agoI wasn't suggesting that it should be thrown out, but mabe a shift in emphasis is needed. Multiple hours on times tables 2-12 is a lot of time out of the school week. Maybe my own memories of frustration at school, plus having to calm down a deeply upset, bored, son after school so many times affect my perception of the system.
- bambataa 6y agoSure, but multiplication tables are fundamental and are useful lifelong. Coins are still a very common feature of life and also useful for teaching addition, also very useful for life. I appreciate we have to move with the times (I’m not pushing for reintroducing log tables) but it seems useful that kids come out with a solid grasp of fundamental reality around them —- reading an analogue clock, knowing the shape of the world in broad outline, being able to count change. To use a programming analogy, it is better to teach someone JS and how to do DOM manipulation, so that they see it’s a pain, and then show them React and how it’s useful, than just jumping straight into the current state of the art.