The Wall Street Journal reports a presidential panel will describe the nation’s system of teaching math as “broken” and recommend a focus on basic math instruction.
“The National Mathematics Advisory Panel, appointed by President Bush in 2006, is expected to urge the nation’s teachers to promote ‘quick and effortless’ recall of arithmetic facts in early grades, mastery of fractions in middle school, and rigorous algebra courses in high school or even earlier,” the Journal reports. “Targeting such key elements of math would mark a sharp departure from the diverse priorities that now govern teaching of the subject in U.S. public schools.”
The back-to-basics call will surely be music to the ears of teachers and parents unhappy with constructivist math programs in Texas, Washington, and elsewhere who have railed recently against “fuzzy math.” That said, the members of the advisory panel includes mathematicians and educators from both sides of the “reform vs. basics” math wars. “The draft of the final report declines to take sides, saying the group agreed only on the content that students must master, not the best way to teach it,” reports the WSJ.
“Unlike most countries that outperform the U.S., America leaves education decisions largely to state and local governments and has no national curriculum,” notes the paper. “School boards and state education departments across the country are likely to pore over the math panel’s findings and adjust their teaching to make sure it aligns with the nation’s best thinking on math instruction.”
Did someone say national curriculum??
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