Thursday, October 19, 2006

Make Math Fun!

USA Today: "The more kids like math and say they do well in it, the less likely they are to do well." Al Mohler has the roundup on the discovery that bolstering self-esteem and showing practical relevance in math education isn't helping.

Full disclosure: I never liked math, I didn't do well in it, and would have told you so as a young lad. In fact, I remember in 4th grade asking our substitute teacher--with a bit of indignation and so the whole class could benefit from my wisdom--"When are we ever going to use this in life?" We were studying multiplication.

Update: Here is an article by Vern Poythress from 30 years ago on A Biblical View of Mathematics.