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I 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

by zelos 6y ago

I 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 ago
Sure, 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.