Re: What was Old Math?

On 2008-02-22, bulegoge@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <bulegoge@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
When I listened to this song on new math , I think this is how I was
taught. So what was old math?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a81YvrV7Vv8

Being from the Netherlands, I have no clue as to what the `Old Math' in
America was, but I can tell you about the difference as to what it was here,
compared to the video.

It is not so much `new' math, but a `new way' to math. That is, what is done
is exactly the same, but in a different manner. I'll show you an addition
example `old-style' and `new-style'

Old Style:

1 1 1
324 324 324 324
249 --> 249 --> 249 --> 249
---+ ---+ ---+ ---+
3 73 573

(about it)


New Style:
324 + 249 = 324 + 6 + 243 = 330 + 243 =
330 + 240 + 3 = 370 + 200 + 3 = 570 + 3 = 573

Not a different result, but a different way of achieving it. More and more
time is now spent on getting the children to think of funny ways to do
addition, multiplication, subtraction, division, while they could have learned
a standard algorithm for it instead, which is faster, uses less space (save
the trees, dude!), and get on with doing some real work.

A few of my relatives are being taught similar to the new math represented.
The `new Math' is merely another way of teaching math. And -- in my opinion --
a worse method.

Just my opinion though.

Regards,
Sjoerd Job
.

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