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Report Calls for Changes in Math Instruction
The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics issued a report
last week urging that math instruction in kindergarten through
eighth grade focus on a few basic skills at each grade level, rather
than the dozens of topics many states now require. This recommendation
represents a major shift from the Council's stance in a 1989 report
that called for a constructivist approach, playing down memorization
in favor of having children find their own approaches to problems.
Citing the significant impact of the 1989 report - explicitly
acknowledged by more than half the states' current math standards
- some education experts feel the new report, "Curriculum
Focal Points," has the potential to initiate a major overhaul
in the teaching of mathematics. However, in a New York Times article
last week, NCTM president Francis Fennell played this down, adding
that he did not like the talk of "math wars."
The report does not take a stand on instructional methods, Dr.
Fennell pointed out in the Times story, allowing teachers
to use whatever works: worksheets, calculators or materials like
rods that children can manipulate to try out different numeric
relationships.
Questions, ideas, or
in need of more information? Please contact Stacey
Pusey at 856-241-7772.
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"Report
Urges Changes in the Teaching of Math in U.S. Schools"
The New York Times
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