Recently in the news was a discussion about so much math in high school and the lack of good grades hindering being accepted into college.
I remember having taken algebra and trigonometry which was long ago.
During my lifetime I have never used either of them to any extent.
Instead of plunging into the heavy math of these two subjects, it seems that it would be much more productive if the students first acquired an understanding of what these subjects are, what they are used for and which professions rely on them.
That could well create an interest in delving deeper into them.
What I recently discovered (It is partly in the dictionary) is that algebra originated in Arabic- al jebr. It was long ago introduced into Greece and now we have it as algebra.
I have noticed that the name of things and a news source begin al this and that.
Now I know Arabic al means the in English. It does not seem to be gender sensitive as it is in French, Spanish and Italian.
One of my ideas is that all of the money in the world and all of the lies ever spoken cannot destroy one grain of truth.
This I here express it algebraically as X=truth, Y=all the money … and Z= all the lies: X – (Y+Z) = X.
Trig deals with angles and triangles and of determining the area of a triangle or whatever shape.
Sometimes we use our own ingenuity to solve problems.
A simple case is a right angle (90 degrees) with one side 10 feet long and the other 4 feet long with a line drawn from the ends to form a triangle. What is the area?
Just make or imagine a rectangle 10 by 4 feet.
We know length times width equals area. Therefore 40 square feet.
Drawing a line from one corner to the other makes it obvious that the triangle is half or 20 square feet.
Of course it becomes difficult with different angles.
The great majority of students will never use these math types during a lifetime.
Just teach them creatively so the students comprehend the subjects well. Forget the heavy math.
They don’t have to become experts just to get a grade. Don’t destroy a students chance for a future with bad grades.
Charles Samek
Mineola
Readers Write: An alternative way to teach math in our schools
