By the Numbers: Math Anathema
The experts (and most kids) declare U.S. math education "broken."
by Edutopia Staff
May 23, 2008
Eighty-four percent of kids would rather take out the trash, clean their rooms, or go to the dentist than do their math homework.
One complaint: Math textbooks cover too many topics without enough depth.
The finding by the National Mathematics Advisory Panel [2] declared math education in the United States "broken" and called on schools to focus on teaching fundamental math skills that provide the underpinning for success in high tech jobs.
The panel said that students must be able to add and subtract whole numbers by the end of third grade and be skilled at adding and subtracting fractions and decimals by the end of fifth grade.
Links:
[1] http://www.edutopia.org/stat-math-education-crisis#
[2] http://www.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/mathpanel/index.html