Math Wars Peace Treaty Analysis

This paper will demonstrate the pre-service teachers’ understanding of mathematical practices as part of the Common Core State Standards in Mathematics. It will address two specific standards for Mathematical Practices, describing the essence of both and providing a description of how teachers facilitate these practices and how students are engaged in the practices.

[F]or more than a decade, research studies of mathematics education in high-performing countries have concluded that mathematics education in the United States must become substantially more focused and coherent in order to improve mathematics achievement in this country. To deliver on this promise, the mathematics standards are designed to address the problem of a curriculum that is “a mile wide and an inch deep.”

The Standards for Mathematical Practice are essential tools that will ensure a student has everything they need to improve in their knowledge and understanding in mathematics. Thus, it is highly important that all level mathematical educators try to implement these standards into their classrooms. Ultimately, there are two sections called, “processes and proficiencies” in which the standards are derived from. The practices are depended on these two standards in the mathematics education. For the reason being, that they provide strategies that will help develop a foundation that students may rely on to comprehend and approach a problem. In other words, the standards do not show step-by-step ways on how to solve a problem, but rather help a student feel comfortable and confident in approaching, analyzing, and finishing a problem. The process standards defined by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics emphasizes a way of problem solving, reasoning and proof, communication, connections, and representations. The proficiencies identified by the National Research Council include, adaptive reasoning, strategic competence, conceptual understanding, productive disposition, and procedural fluency. Knowing how beneficial the Standards for Mathematical Practice is for students, it is clear that as a future teacher I will implement these strategies in every classroom so that all my students may have a chance to prosper.

Mathematical understanding influences all areas of life from social to private and civil. Therefore maths education is widely believed to be the single most important aspect to establishing opportunities for young people; unfortunately, many struggle with mathematics and become indifferent as they continue to encounter obstacles with regard to engagement (Anthony & Walshaw, 2009). Knowing a

By twelfth grade U.S. was near the bottom in international rankings. Bill Schmidt is not the first to identify the “mile wide, inch deep” character of the American mathematics curriculum. A standard-setting process could be a powerful tool in narrowing and deepening the curriculum. (Haycock, 2002). It has been found that students will learn more mathematics when they are exposed to college-preparatory mathematics curriculum; even if they are not college bound. The Common Core standards emphasize critical thinking, creativity. and analysis over rote memorization. This curriculum makes a huge difference in student achievement (2014). The Common Core standards will also help build long-term abilities for our schools to deliver rigorous. meaningful

Mathematics, like every creation of man, have evolved without really knowing how far you can get with them: the scope of the computer, physics, chemistry, algebra, all are evidence of this. Every aspect of our culture is based in some way or another in Mathematics: language, music, dance, art, sculpture, architecture, biology, daily life. All these areas of measurements and calculations are accurate. Even in nature, everything follows a precise pattern and a precise order: a flower, a shell, a butterfly, day and night, the seasons. All this makes mathematics essential for human life and they can not be limited only to a matter within the school curriculum; here lies the importance of teaching math in a pleasure, enjoyable and understandable way. Mathematics is an aid to the development of the child and should be seen as an aid to life and not as an obstacle in their lifes.

“Each event is as completely unexpected as a ghost at the top of the stairs. Or the existence, in a ordinary classroom, of a profoundly beautiful object called pure mathematics” (King 15). In Jerry P. Kings novel, The Art of Mathematics, he presents the idea that most people go through math classes from elementary to high school not because we enjoy it, but because it is a requirement. We are taught simple arithmetic to trigonometry, bisectors within a triangle, and how tall a tree is by its angle from the top to the ground. While many do not find the importance or application between math and our daily lives, it is generally found boring and useless. It doesn’t help when some math teachers are just as uninterested, or find just a little value of math as the students. King continues on to explain how this

In today’s society mathematics is a vital part of day-to-day life. No matter what a person is doing at home or at the workplace, he/she is constantly using different mathematics skills to simply function. Then what does this mean for mathematics education? When someone needs to utilize a skill every day then he/she needs a strong background in the skill. Therefore, today’s students need more than a just a working knowledge of mathematics or enough knowledge to pass a test. Today’s students need to understand how mathematics works and how to utilize mathematics skills in the best way possible.

Maths is ubiquitous in our lives, but depending on the learning received as a child it could inspire or frighten. If a child has a negative experience in mathematics, that experience has the ability to affect his/her attitude toward mathematics as an adult. Solso (2009) explains that math has the ability to confuse, frighten, and frustrate learners of all ages; Math also has the ability to inspire, encourage and achieve. Almost all daily activities include some form of mathematical procedure, whether people are aware of it or not. Possessing a solid learning foundation for math is vital to ensure a lifelong understanding of math. This essay will discuss why it is crucial to develop in children the ability to tackle problems with initiative and confidence (Anghileri, 2006, p. 2) and why mathematics has changed from careful rehearsal of standard procedures to a focus on mathematical thinking and communication to prepare them for the world of tomorrow (Anghileri).

A Year in the Life of an Elementary School: One School's Experiences in Meeting New Mathematics Standards

In 2010 majority of the states in the U.S. adopted the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). These new standards were built on the best of high-quality math standards from states across the country. They also draw on the most important international models for mathematical practice, as well as research and input from numerous sources, including state departments of education, scholars, assessment developers, professional organizations, educators, parents and students, and members of the public. The CCSS provide clarity and specificity rather than broad general statements. The CCSS stress conceptual understanding of key ideas, but also by continually returning to organizing principles such as place value and the laws of arithmetic to structure

Standards for Mathematical Practice Kindergarten- Grade 12; Measurement and Data: Work with time and money.

Chapter 4 describes Tom’s school experience in Pennsylvania and Poland, and discussed the relationship between math and many American students. Tom did not like math and thought he was not good at it. When he was asked to solve a problem in his class in Poland, he tried to make an excuse to avoid going to the board to solve it, which the book hinted typically worked in his American classes. However, he was still asked to solve the problem, which he could not do. The book explained that math is a difficult subject for many American students, and that on the PISA assessment American students score pretty low. Despite the bad reputation of American students being bad at math, the state of Minnesota ranked proficient in math. Overall, the chapter explained why students struggle in math and what Minnesota did to produce high test scores (Ripley, 2013).

Parents are concerned with the changes being made in the way their children are taught math. They are outraged that Common Core wants to cut memorization tecniques like “PEMDAS” and cross-multiplication that “help kids get the right answers to difficult [math] problems.” In contrast, experts believe that techniques “allow students to skip…conceptual thinking.” Also, Common Core math standards claim that getting the correct answer is only the first step, students must then “understand the

Many students at the elementary level perform poorly in mathematics because when they complete kindergarten; they acquire inadequate knowledge of basic mathematics. Due to lack of enough skills and concepts, these students continue to experience this problem even in upper elementary school (Duncan et al, 2007).By the fourth grade, these students performance becomes very poor such that they are not expected to improve when they get to the next grade. The major program to improve student’s achievement in mathematics is the introduction of more intense professional development in teacher-led instruction, providing examples, and teaching problem-solving strategies for all