We just returned from a week-long trip to visit our son and grandsons in Las Vegas. They are growing up . . . much too quickly, I might add. The older grandson will be a sophomore in high school in the fall, and the younger one will be an eighth grader. They go to a charter school that focuses on science; I know they are getting a quality education, one that prides itself on providing a strong academic curriculum that prepares its students for college.
I have come to realize that despite being an educator for 45 years (now retired for four years) and continuing to keep abreast via articles and my professional learning network, I still have much to learn. As a school leader, I encouraged our teachers and students to use technology as a tool for exploring, discovering, creating, and sharing. I love that our grandsons are doing a lot of learning outside of school hours. We have honest discussions on current issues that matter to them, issues that will impact their world moving forward. They know how to research to find answers to their questions, and they are much more aware of issues such as school violence, racial discord, and other current events. Their viewpoints aren’t always aligned with ours, but their ideas will probably change over time due to experiences they will have. I look back at my life when I was their age, and there is no comparison; they are much more aware of their world and the possibilities, It’s not just current events, however. They are members of virtual communities and communicate confidently and knowledgeably with adults about NFTs. They purchase baseball cards and sell or trade when the opportunity comes up, and they keep up-to-date about what’s hot and what’s not. They are patient and try to answer my numerous questions, but I am sure they wonder why their grandma doesn’t understand when it’s so clear to them.
Earlier this summer, I read this op-ed Calculus isn’t the only option. Let’s broaden and update the current math curriculum and I thought of our grandsons. As the authors of this op-ed share in their final sentence: “In a world where we are regularly updating our software, our devices, and our lexicons, why wouldn’t we want the same for our children’s math education?” This recent trip has validated my beliefs that our young people do need more options. When I reflect on my journey as a student and then as a teacher who taught young students, I realize how we much more meaningful math can and should be if we focused on real-world application.
I grew up in a different world. Our parents lived through the Great Depression, and they were very careful with their hard-earned money. It was probably ingrained in them by their parents’ generation, many who were immigrants and scrimped and saved and worked several jobs so they could purchase a home or an automobile. My husband shares about how his grandfather purchased his brand-new DeSoto car with Roosevelt dimes he had saved from his business. I admit that I know very little about the stock market and other investments. Our “wealth” is in our home which my husband and I purchased shortly after we were married. We are fortunate that both of us retired after many years working for the State, so we can live comfortably on our fixed income. That may not be the case for our grandsons so realizing how to invest and save money is important for their future. They are fortunate to have a Dad who is knowledgeable and can guide his sons whether it’s buying baseball cards or NFTs or answering questions about the real estate market. Our son shared that he sees his sons carefully studying the charts and the crypto markets and asking questions, and he believes that is the best real-life math experience they could have. They don’t always make the “right” decision, but that is all a part of the learning. I agree.
I remember seeing this visual about math education a few years ago, and I think it’s a good time to share it again. Math shouldn’t be neat and tidy and predictable. Our students need to see math as something they need to grapple with and to make sense of because it is an essential part of this world. They need to persevere and discuss real problems with others to see different viewpoints; this needs to be an essential part of every classroom from preschool on. Students need to know that math is all around them and that there is no such thing as “I am not good at math.” There is so much potential for this generation of teachers and learners to change the perception that higher level math is the only option. Let’s make it happen!
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