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Dear Open letter writer, I am a parent of a 10 year old who likes Maths; my choices in fostering and encouraging this trait were to (A) enroll her in a reall

Dear Open letter writer, I am a parent of a 10 year old who likes Maths; my choices in fostering and encouraging this trait were to (A) enroll her in a really expense private school, (b) enroll ins Kumon (its a canadian after school private tutoring type of service) (c) private tutors -- which I can't afford. Please note that her teachers have shown no inclination to help advance her learning beyond the curriculum. Sal and KhanAcademy make it easy for me to help her with learning above her grade level. I do the lessons with her -- last week we were working on advanced probability problems and the lectures were invaluable to me as well as my child. Sal and KA augment my capability and help me become an effective tutor to my child. Regards

Trianglemancsd 13y ago
Open letter writer here. I am so glad to hear that your child finds Khan Academy videos stimulating and thought-provoking. I really do think that's wonderful and I am glad this resource exists for you and your child. I mean this in all sincerity. At the same time, the popular press rhetoric around Mr. Khan is about his revolutionary teaching. The medium (free availability of instructional videos) gets confused with the message (hastily produced rehashing of low-quality traditional content). It is the medium you celebrate in your note here—that the videos are freely available and better than (a) nothing, or (b) very expensive alternatives. In my letter, I was asking Mr. Khan to pay closer attention to the message. Mr. Kamens and others here have indicated that this is coming. I suppose I shall take their word on that for now. Quickly about your 10-year-old? I suggest any of Martin Gardener's books, and "On Numbers" by Isaac Asimov as inexpensive ways to stimulate your child's mathematical mind. "On Numbers" may be tough to find—it has been out of print for years—but it will be worth the effort. Either way, happy learning to you both!
- ScottBurson 13y ago
  The name is spelled Gardner.
  - Trianglemancsd 13y ago
    Drat! Good catch. Martin Gardner it is.
- deleted 13y ago
  [deleted]
ColinWright 13y ago
I think that's fantastic, and I wish you all the very best. I think it's wonderful and amazing in equal parts when a parent takes the time to work with their child to reach their full potential. You are to be applauded - all too often I've had to deal with children who had amazing potential go completely unrealized. But please, please take care with some of the Khan material. This letter highlights one specific place where the method of instruction can lead to major misunderstandings down the line. Undoing misconceptions can be incredibly time-consuming, and ultimately border on impossible. I just hope upon hope that over time the material is improved so it matches their ideals, and continues to enable parents like you.

Trianglemancsd 13y ago

Open letter writer here. I am so glad to hear that your child finds Khan Academy videos stimulating and thought-provoking. I really do think that's wonderful and I am glad this resource exists for you and your child. I mean this in all sincerity. At the same time, the popular press rhetoric around Mr. Khan is about his revolutionary teaching. The medium (free availability of instructional videos) gets confused with the message (hastily produced rehashing of low-quality traditional content). It is the medium you celebrate in your note here—that the videos are freely available and better than (a) nothing, or (b) very expensive alternatives. In my letter, I was asking Mr. Khan to pay closer attention to the message. Mr. Kamens and others here have indicated that this is coming. I suppose I shall take their word on that for now. Quickly about your 10-year-old? I suggest any of Martin Gardener's books, and "On Numbers" by Isaac Asimov as inexpensive ways to stimulate your child's mathematical mind. "On Numbers" may be tough to find—it has been out of print for years—but it will be worth the effort. Either way, happy learning to you both!

ScottBurson 13y ago
The name is spelled Gardner.
- Trianglemancsd 13y ago
  Drat! Good catch. Martin Gardner it is.
deleted 13y ago
[deleted]

ColinWright 13y ago

I think that's fantastic, and I wish you all the very best. I think it's wonderful and amazing in equal parts when a parent takes the time to work with their child to reach their full potential. You are to be applauded - all too often I've had to deal with children who had amazing potential go completely unrealized. But please, please take care with some of the Khan material. This letter highlights one specific place where the method of instruction can lead to major misunderstandings down the line. Undoing misconceptions can be incredibly time-consuming, and ultimately border on impossible. I just hope upon hope that over time the material is improved so it matches their ideals, and continues to enable parents like you.