The 2 Sides in the Math Wars Are Fighting the Wrong Battle
The math wars are raging again.
In statehouses, school board meetings and academic journals, a familiar debate has resurfaced: Should math be taught through clear, repeatable algorithmic steps or with a focus on why the numbers behave the way they do?
This fight has flared up repeatedly for more than a century, with the tide turning back and forth through the years. Today, with math performance stagnant and pandemic-era learning loss still haunting the nation’s classrooms, many in education are hoping that a resolution can herald a science of reading-type breakthrough that brings clarity and results.
Why does neither side ever win the math wars? Perhaps it’s because they’ve been fighting on the wrong battlefield.
Read more at The 74.
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