http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/opinion/67337.php
Published: 10.31.2007
Stanton: AIMS can't calculate kids' math prowess
BILLIE STANTON, Tucson Citizen
Kudos to students in 111 Arizona schools, including 15 in Pima County,
who have improved their math scores on our state test.
And a nod to the Rodel Charitable Foundation of Arizona, which has
been providing these low-income schools with its MAC-Ro program to rev
up math learning.
But while higher achievement on AIMS (Arizona's Instrument to Measure
Standards) is a terrific accomplishment, the true test will be how
these children fare with math years from now.
A child needs more than the ability to give correct answers on AIMS;
she needs to understand the concept behind that math.
Noted intellectual Sheila Tobias, Tucson author of "Overcoming Math
Anxiety" and many other books, says today's students get "a process
that focuses on memorization, testing for short-term recall and
extrinsic rewards."
"What we have to inculcate," Tobias says, "is the intrinsic curiosity
and satisfaction and learning of concepts that will motivate them to
stick with math when math gets really hard."
The rise in test scores may or may not be meaningful, says Alan H.
Schoenfeld, education professor at the University of California at
Berkeley.
In many cases, scores on a state test went up, but scores on other
tests, such as the National Assessment of Educational Progress, did
not.
"The kids were able to do precisely what they were drilled on,"
Schoenfeld says, "but there was no transfer and no greater
understanding of core mathematical concepts than before."
Student understanding of mathematics appears to be shallow, indeed,
according to a survey of students graduating from New York high
schools.
"There were three effects they were absolutely sure of," says Florence
D. Fasanelli, mathematician in residence at the American Association
for the Advancement of Science"
"If you see a decimal point, move it. If you see a sign, change it.
And if you see a fraction, invert it," Fasanelli laments.
But such misconceptions begin long before high school.
Kids should understand that the equal sign (=) means quantities
flanking that sign are the same.
"Most U.S. kids are taught that it means 'the answer goes here,' "
says Phil Daro, a mathematics educator at the University of
California, senior fellow in mathematics at America's Choice and site
director of SERP in San Francisco.
In kindergarten through third grade, few children are exposed to the
"number line" - which shows numerical progression: -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5
and so on.
"Spending time to deepen conceptual understanding of numbers using the
number line might not improve K-3 performance compared to practicing
subtraction problems," Daro says, "but it will pay off in improved
fourth-grade performance."
So how can schools infuse a deep understanding of mathematical
concepts in their students? Train the teachers, Fasanelli says.
"A typical elementary school teacher will not have had more than two
years of math in high school," she says. "Then they get a course in
how to teach it. And that's it. That's all they know.
"Veteran teachers must be given an opportunity to gain a deeper
knowledge of content. Mathematics is not just a series of steps;
there's some underlying logic to it."
A teacher with a strong grasp of mathematical concepts can impart that
information more easily to the child.
"The future depends on these children," Fasanelli says, "particularly
children from underrepresented groups because there are so many of
them. We have to do it right."
Tobias says, "Somewhere between here and college, they're going to
have to develop an intrinsic interest and satisfaction in learning
mathematics."
Whether MAC-Ro will have lasting effects is uncertain.
"It is important to follow the students in the program and see how
they benefit in higher grades before proclaiming victory," Daro says.
"If they persist in standing above the crowd, terrific."
Fred Stevenson, mathematics professor at the University of Arizona,
echoes that sentiment.
"If Rodel and institutions like Rodel can fund these kinds of ventures
for generations and even lifetimes, rather than for the short
intervals of time that administrators and legislators serve, then our
country can become what our leaders claim they want it to be - a truly
mathematically literate country," Stevenson says.
Billie Stanton may be reached at and
573-4664.
8 Comments on this Story
1. Comment by Bruce S. (#276) - October 31,2007 @ 8:25AM
"Noted intellectual Sheila Tobias..."
Oh, please. Her inane theories on "math anxiety" have stifled progress
on teaching mathematics.
2. Comment by pablo x. (bajo) - October 31,2007 @ 10:02AM
Elementary teachers have only had two years of high school math. Add
to that, they have only had one college math course; Math for
Elementary Teachers. Most of them could not pass College Algebra and
many are Math(s) flunkees. That is why they were elementary ed majors
to begin with.
3. Comment by Merle B. (MerleBreiland) - October 31,2007 @ 10:15AM
My experience with people educated using modern techniques has been
far from great. I have had employees with Masters degrees that had a
difficult time in writing a comprehensive paragraph not to mention
that they could not spell.
I have had college graduate employees with business degrees that could
not even balance their own check books.
It wasn't that these people were stupid, far from it, they just had
not gotten the idea of practical applications for what they learned.
At least testing these students to a standard gives a flicker of an
idea of what they have ahead.
4. Comment by JACOB K. (Jake001) - October 31,2007 @ 10:48AM
Rating: 3 Thumbs Up
Perhaps an annual AIMS type test for teachers, with mandated remedial
education courses for those not achieving acceptable grades would be a
step in the right direction. Just a thought,as statistics seem to
indicate the national public education system, but particularly in
ARIZONA, is deplorable.
5. Comment by shane l. (maranaman) - October 31,2007 @ 12:34PM
Rating: 3 Thumbs Up
I am sick and tired of always blaming the teachers. My children's
education is my responsibility and I appreciate the teachers ASSISTING
me. The education system is fine; it is the parents that are
deplorable. I know exactly what subjects my children are learning in
school and I go over the subjects with them. I assist the mathematic
lessons by showing them what a number line is. I make sure all their
homework is finished. I make sure they understand the concepts of the
lessons. If your children are not learning, look in the mirror. Place
the blame where it belongs.
6. Comment by Hugh M. (shuggie) - October 31,2007 @ 1:01PM
Rating: 1 Thumb Down
If we're talking about numeracy, fine, but school mathematics has
little to do with real mathematics, and lack of success with it at
school proves very little. The subject bored me stiff at school, but I
graduated in it at university and I now pursue it as a hobby. The
penny drops eventually or it doesn't. I had a lecturer with a
doctorate in math who asked us not to submit the arithmetical bits,
since neither we nor would get any better at that particular branch of
the subject. True.
7. Comment by Dabil G. (Red Star) - October 31,2007 @ 4:00PM
Rating: 1 Thumb Up
If the student hasn't learned, the teacher hasn't taught.
8. Comment by J Z. (#4898) - October 31,2007 @ 4:26PM
Rating: 1 Thumb Up
.... and the parent hasn't cared.
.
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