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| You don't get good at reading by not reading. Kids in the Digital Age read less. Likewise, you don't get good at math by not practicing the fundamentals--facts and procedures--so they stick in long-term memory for instant use in problem-solving. (Model: Hannah) |
My Thoughts
In school, kids don't practice math facts and standard procedures enough. Hence, many students stumble over simple arithmetic. Mastering arithmetic has not been a primary goal in modern classrooms, but it should have been. And it used to be. Check out 19th Century Arithmetic (3rd/4th Grade):
Find the interest of $60 for 4 months at 5%.
Sometimes, I think we have harmed education more by trying to fix it. And, the latest, trendy fixes have been digital. Many fixes have not been supported by scientific evidence. They did not improve achievement in math or reading. Also, a lot of classroom instruction has not been based on the cognitive science of learning.
Tech Hype (The Folly of Technological Solutionism)
The aggressive marketing of tech by lobbyists, philanthropists, and foundations that want to transform, radically change, or deschool education their way has failed to improve achievement. Billions and billions have been invested in education by donors with unremarkable achievement. Unlike students in Singapore, U.S. 1st-grade students aren't required to memorize math facts and learn other basics (e.g., standard algorithms). Also, students fall behind because the curriculum is not world-class. Furthermore, the minimal guidance methods of instruction have been ineffective.
Larry Cuban (Stanford) writes, "There are donors who push for certain kinds of reforms that undermine the public good." Consequently, schools spend a massive amount of tech and ineffective programs, which leaves less money for textbooks, classroom supplies, and teachers.
Algorithms are not the real world.
Google thinks its algorithms never get things wrong. Really? Algorithms are not perfect. They are not the real world. Since when should algorithms dictate solutions to complex education issues or define humanity? Evgeny Morozov (The Folly of Technological Solutionism) writes, "Not every problem is amenable to a technological fix," especially education.
Digital Kids know less math. Reading books has declined. For a decade, both math and reading achievement has stagnated. Mark Bauerlein (The Dumbest Generation) says that "leisure reading is a significant factor in academic progress. The more kids read out of school and in school, the higher their scores." The problem is that kids are reading less, not more. Martin Heidegger (1954 essay) says that "technology is now the center of our being. It has replaced us." It is much worse now, says Christian Madsbjerg. "We have stopped thinking. Machines do it for us." Our cognitive abilities are slowly eroding because they are no longer used. "We stop seeing numbers and models as a representation of the world, and we start seeing them as the truth--the only truth. We often make really poor decisions just because it is so uncomfortable to do the hard work of thinking." (Note: Heidegger statement is from Christian Madsbjerg (Sensemaking).
Silicon Valley
The ideology of Silicon Valley is "the promise that technology will solve it--whatever it is. And the solution is sure to be revolutionary." In education, it replaces the old with the new. Everything "old school" has been tossed out. Anything digital is good. Many of today's digital kids don't want to work hard, think, read, or do math. For students, learning stuff (knowledge) is not that important. Bauerlein points out that there were "little or no gains in achievement once the schools went digital." In today's schools, effort trumps excellence. Grades are no longer based on performance, accomplishment, or merit. All students pass regardless of achievement.
"Students should come to school to learn, not to text," write Friedman and Mandelbaum (That Used to Be Us). Students don't want to study to master the content; they want to use social media and gadgets.
Arithmetic is not an opinion.
The problem in education with generous contracts is that school districts cannot afford them. Likewise, States cannot afford "huge pension benefits for union workers who no longer work." State politicians and district leaders need to learn arithmetic and live within their means.
Practice does not cause talent.
I agree with mathematician Ian Stewart that practice does not cause talent. There has to be something there to begin with: an innate ability that can expand and flourish (brain plasticity) given excellent instruction with practice-practice-practice. Like any ability (athletic, musical, logical-mathematical, linguistic, academic, etc.), it varies widely from person to person. It is in your DNA. But, practice alone does not cause talent; it improves an ability one already has. In short, practice improves performance. You don't get good at something unless you practice-practice-practice, then practice some more. Oh, did I say you need to practice? In short, practice activates talent, improves performance, and develops innate ability, but it does not cause talent.
Many innovations have failed in our schools.
If you want to innovate, then first become an expert. Unfortunately, "different" is often perceived as better, but is it? Indeed, 82% of the innovations funded by the U.S. Department of Education had failed to improve reading or math achievement. WOW!!!!! In short, well-intended changes in the classroom (aka innovations) are not practical because they don't work well. Many programs and practices in today's classrooms, including those linked to tech, have not improved achievement. Indeed, so-called technology-driven innovation has been expensive ($$$) with little benefit in achievement. Tech is not a panacea.
Literacy (?)
The digital age has not redefined literacy, it has replaced it. Fred Siegel calls it digital miseducation. Consequently, today's students know less math, science, geography/history, and literature than students of 20 years ago. Students don't read much, not even textbooks. Summer reading has declined. Also, students lack critical reading skills and cannot tell the difference between fiction and non-fiction, writes David Joliffe, an English professor. Likewise, students have difficulty distinguishing fact from inference. They are often mixed together. So, do adults.
Knowledge has been shortchanged.
Knowledge is the basis of critical thinking, creativity, and innovation. Why are schools not concentrating on students gaining fundamentals of factual and procedural knowledge in long-term memory? Teachers should focus on the mastery of fundamentals like Singapore, not state test proficiencies! The bottom line is that kids must know facts in long-term memory to perform math, but many don't.
Knowing something is better than not knowing something.
Whoever said that "ignorance is bliss" was a fool. Your financial future is built on living below your means and knowing how exponential growth works (math). Even 4th graders in the 1800s calculated simple interest, percentages, and ratios, while many of today's 4th graders stumble of simple arithmetic. Indeed, academic expectations and performances today are much lower than they used to be.
19th Century 4th Grade Arithmetic
Find the interest of $60 for 4 months at 5%.
(Ray's New Intellectual Arithmetic for 3rd & 4th Grade, 1877)
No repeatability means bad ideas persist in education.
A lot of people think that you make a bunch of observations, then infer a rule or theory, but that's not the way science works. If you are an expert in a field, you guess a rule, then carefully craft an experiment to make observations (measurements). Intrinsically, real science weeds out bad ideas. Also, experiments need to be replicated by other scientists and peer-reviewed. On the other hand, research in education doesn't do that. It suffers from confirmation bias, so-called anecdotal evidence, or statistical gibberish. There is no repeatability. Consequently, many unsupported ideas or practices in education thrive. Progressive educators (aka liberals) believe that memorizing facts and procedures is bad for kids. It's old school. Really?
Ideas in this post are subject to change.
Updated: 5-17-19, 5-18-19, 5-19-19, 5-21-19
©2019 - 2020 LT/ThinkAlgebra
Comments: ThinkAlgebra@cox.net
Find the interest of $60 for 4 months at 5%.
Sometimes, I think we have harmed education more by trying to fix it. And, the latest, trendy fixes have been digital. Many fixes have not been supported by scientific evidence. They did not improve achievement in math or reading. Also, a lot of classroom instruction has not been based on the cognitive science of learning.
Tech Hype (The Folly of Technological Solutionism)
The aggressive marketing of tech by lobbyists, philanthropists, and foundations that want to transform, radically change, or deschool education their way has failed to improve achievement. Billions and billions have been invested in education by donors with unremarkable achievement. Unlike students in Singapore, U.S. 1st-grade students aren't required to memorize math facts and learn other basics (e.g., standard algorithms). Also, students fall behind because the curriculum is not world-class. Furthermore, the minimal guidance methods of instruction have been ineffective.
Larry Cuban (Stanford) writes, "There are donors who push for certain kinds of reforms that undermine the public good." Consequently, schools spend a massive amount of tech and ineffective programs, which leaves less money for textbooks, classroom supplies, and teachers.
Algorithms are not the real world.
Google thinks its algorithms never get things wrong. Really? Algorithms are not perfect. They are not the real world. Since when should algorithms dictate solutions to complex education issues or define humanity? Evgeny Morozov (The Folly of Technological Solutionism) writes, "Not every problem is amenable to a technological fix," especially education.
Digital Kids know less math. Reading books has declined. For a decade, both math and reading achievement has stagnated. Mark Bauerlein (The Dumbest Generation) says that "leisure reading is a significant factor in academic progress. The more kids read out of school and in school, the higher their scores." The problem is that kids are reading less, not more. Martin Heidegger (1954 essay) says that "technology is now the center of our being. It has replaced us." It is much worse now, says Christian Madsbjerg. "We have stopped thinking. Machines do it for us." Our cognitive abilities are slowly eroding because they are no longer used. "We stop seeing numbers and models as a representation of the world, and we start seeing them as the truth--the only truth. We often make really poor decisions just because it is so uncomfortable to do the hard work of thinking." (Note: Heidegger statement is from Christian Madsbjerg (Sensemaking).
Silicon Valley
The ideology of Silicon Valley is "the promise that technology will solve it--whatever it is. And the solution is sure to be revolutionary." In education, it replaces the old with the new. Everything "old school" has been tossed out. Anything digital is good. Many of today's digital kids don't want to work hard, think, read, or do math. For students, learning stuff (knowledge) is not that important. Bauerlein points out that there were "little or no gains in achievement once the schools went digital." In today's schools, effort trumps excellence. Grades are no longer based on performance, accomplishment, or merit. All students pass regardless of achievement.
"Students should come to school to learn, not to text," write Friedman and Mandelbaum (That Used to Be Us). Students don't want to study to master the content; they want to use social media and gadgets.
Arithmetic is not an opinion.
The problem in education with generous contracts is that school districts cannot afford them. Likewise, States cannot afford "huge pension benefits for union workers who no longer work." State politicians and district leaders need to learn arithmetic and live within their means.
Practice does not cause talent.
I agree with mathematician Ian Stewart that practice does not cause talent. There has to be something there to begin with: an innate ability that can expand and flourish (brain plasticity) given excellent instruction with practice-practice-practice. Like any ability (athletic, musical, logical-mathematical, linguistic, academic, etc.), it varies widely from person to person. It is in your DNA. But, practice alone does not cause talent; it improves an ability one already has. In short, practice improves performance. You don't get good at something unless you practice-practice-practice, then practice some more. Oh, did I say you need to practice? In short, practice activates talent, improves performance, and develops innate ability, but it does not cause talent.
Many innovations have failed in our schools.
If you want to innovate, then first become an expert. Unfortunately, "different" is often perceived as better, but is it? Indeed, 82% of the innovations funded by the U.S. Department of Education had failed to improve reading or math achievement. WOW!!!!! In short, well-intended changes in the classroom (aka innovations) are not practical because they don't work well. Many programs and practices in today's classrooms, including those linked to tech, have not improved achievement. Indeed, so-called technology-driven innovation has been expensive ($$$) with little benefit in achievement. Tech is not a panacea.
Literacy (?)
The digital age has not redefined literacy, it has replaced it. Fred Siegel calls it digital miseducation. Consequently, today's students know less math, science, geography/history, and literature than students of 20 years ago. Students don't read much, not even textbooks. Summer reading has declined. Also, students lack critical reading skills and cannot tell the difference between fiction and non-fiction, writes David Joliffe, an English professor. Likewise, students have difficulty distinguishing fact from inference. They are often mixed together. So, do adults.
Knowledge has been shortchanged.
Knowledge is the basis of critical thinking, creativity, and innovation. Why are schools not concentrating on students gaining fundamentals of factual and procedural knowledge in long-term memory? Teachers should focus on the mastery of fundamentals like Singapore, not state test proficiencies! The bottom line is that kids must know facts in long-term memory to perform math, but many don't.
Knowing something is better than not knowing something.
Whoever said that "ignorance is bliss" was a fool. Your financial future is built on living below your means and knowing how exponential growth works (math). Even 4th graders in the 1800s calculated simple interest, percentages, and ratios, while many of today's 4th graders stumble of simple arithmetic. Indeed, academic expectations and performances today are much lower than they used to be.
19th Century 4th Grade Arithmetic
Find the interest of $60 for 4 months at 5%.
(Ray's New Intellectual Arithmetic for 3rd & 4th Grade, 1877)
No repeatability means bad ideas persist in education.
A lot of people think that you make a bunch of observations, then infer a rule or theory, but that's not the way science works. If you are an expert in a field, you guess a rule, then carefully craft an experiment to make observations (measurements). Intrinsically, real science weeds out bad ideas. Also, experiments need to be replicated by other scientists and peer-reviewed. On the other hand, research in education doesn't do that. It suffers from confirmation bias, so-called anecdotal evidence, or statistical gibberish. There is no repeatability. Consequently, many unsupported ideas or practices in education thrive. Progressive educators (aka liberals) believe that memorizing facts and procedures is bad for kids. It's old school. Really?
Ideas in this post are subject to change.
Updated: 5-17-19, 5-18-19, 5-19-19, 5-21-19
©2019 - 2020 LT/ThinkAlgebra
Comments: ThinkAlgebra@cox.net
