Should We Use The Calculator Usage? The United States School System?

Calculator - for a student who still has trouble with basic computation skills, but needs to work on higher-level

In an Op-Ed by Andrew Hacker “Is Algebra Necessary,” he explains why math is a difficult over glorified subject, that must be removed from high schools and universities. However, Through the power of education, the language of numbers helps us make important decision and preform everyday tasks (learner.org). Math, for many is a challenging subject, but as technology advances, classrooms tailor lessons for students who prefer to engage hands on. Therefore, numbers, symbols and letters are not only for the classroom, but also the real world. I believe math is an important subject, removing it from high schools and universities is not the answer, instead it is necessary to implement technology because math will always be used.

In-spite of the global crusade for increasing the use of technology in classrooms to aid teaching and learning, there are some people however who are not so keen to embrace the idea. Those who subscribe to this idea believe that the introduction of technology into the classroom is hurting the teaching and learning of subjects like science and mathematics. In a web article titled “Why Johnny Can’t Add Without a Calculator”, the author Mr. Konstantin Kakaes had this to say about technology in education; “It is beginning to do to our educational system what the transformation to industrial agriculture has done to our food system over the past half century: efficiently produce a deluge of cheap, empty calories” (K, Kakaes, 2012). Against the argument

Students are not allowed to have calculators while learning basic math functions like addition, subtraction, multiplication and subtraction. The reason behind this is quite simple, the information is necessary to being a productive student and adult. Pulling out a calculator for simple addition problems is not always practical. Long after the school years are over, remembering these simple facts are still recalled easily. While the knowledge to figure out the harder problems with written long hand is still there, most will spend the time to find a calculator, or pull out a smartphone, to come up with the answer. It’s a means to the easiest route possible to find the answer, and that is where the problem starts.

Since schools have implemented the Common Core standards, many parents find themselves increasingly confused by the coursework their children bring home, feeling incapable of providing homework help. Because the methods kids are now learning in school are dramatically different than those you might have been taught, the changes may seem arbitrary and unnecessary. However, as the expert math tutors at Mathnasium of La Cañada explain, the new standards are intended to engender a deeper understanding of mathematical concepts and why they work.

The future of math and science in the United States is on a slow rise to the progression of our nation's education. Currently in today's world the United States is still falling behind other foreign countries, as stated by the PEW research center (DeSilver, Drew). The PEW research center works with expertise in the field of science, politics, economic, and foreign topics to provide the most accurate information making this site reliable. The National Center for Education states that the United States is moving at a steady speed of a one percent increase each year into developing the education of math and science (DeSilver, Drew). With a one percent increase we need to

Common Core concentrates on a coherent set of math skills and concepts. Before this concept was implemented in the American Education system this new way of addressing math problems and concepts was endorsed by teachers, parents, and students. Although, the purpose of common core math was to promote deeper thinking and understanding in students, regardless of its objectives, all it is doing is reducing not only students but also parents to tears. Statistics show that public support for common core has dropped 16 percent since 2013, when 65 percent of Americans were in favor of the Common Core standards, according to the ninth annual Education Next poll. And possibly the most surprising change in opinion has been among teachers, in 2013, 76 percent of teachers said they were in favor of the Common Core. In the new survey, only

America has been experiencing problems with math in education. Internationally we are not doing very well in math. This is not good for us as a country because math is an important part of our country’s growth. One reason for our failures in mathematics is because of the inadequate teachings of math in school. Some reasons why Americans are not good in math is because we teach memorization, teaching to the test, and teaching only the procedure.

In mathematics, the calculator can be an effective teaching and learning resource. Calculators can be used with children in all age groups, pupils can use calculators to explore and enhance their understanding of mathematics. It is important that children become confident users of calculators. They should recognise that the calculator is a tool they are in control of and understand how it can help them to develop their mathematical skills.

Math has been around since the beginning of time, although “Pre-dynastic Egyptians and Sumerians represented geometric designs on their artefacts as early as the 5th millennium BCE”(Mastin). However, students have one big question, “When will we use math in the real world”, and this has given people the thought that the curriculum should be changed to only math that will be used in the real world, nothing more, nothing less. This is completely wrong due to many reasons, one being that the math that is taught today already gives us the necessary knowledge that can help us succeed in a future job(Shane), the curriculum taught today gives individuals much more of a variety of math(Ehret), and lastly the math taught in the curriculum that we use today helps kids understand other subjects better(Glosser).

Math is a difficult subject for many high school students. Goldberger author of beating the odds describes “the American education system having a gap in math achievement along the income and race lines.”(Goldberger, 2008) It would be nearly impossible to change the amount a family makes each year, or changing the race a person was born with but their is something that can be done to make the math achievement gap go away. All students entering high school should be required to take a math diagnostic exam prior to their ninth grade year. Students should then be separated by their math abilities to help students with greater difficulty in the subject. Students who do not meet the minimum standards for the test should be encouraged to take preparation classes for math before school starts. This will not only help students who need help succeed, but it will also keep students interested by preparing them for future classes. Keeping a students interest is

While various people consider the current American school system to be a failure; there are others who maintain belief in its effectiveness. Their argument is built on the idea that schools are not supposed to guarantee success for every student. This expectation of schools to have all or nothing as a measure of success is rooted in the 2001 no child left behind act--a law that attempts to keep everyone on equal ground by focusing on those falling behind in school. “NCLB pointed to 2014 as the deadline for 100 percent proficiency. If schools, districts and states can 't meet that deadline, well, they have failed. Doesn 't matter that people are working hard to draft new policies and legislation, and devising new and improved means of integrating technology into curricula, or that greater instructional rigor than ever before is being demanded of our teachers” (Berlin). No matter how much the present structure accomplishes; it will never be able to reach the unrealistic goal of achievement.

Technology is also very important with a student’ education. There are so many uses for technology that can show beneficial for both Asian students and United States students. Throughout the United States there is a wide variety of technology available for teachers. Mathematics Analysis Software, like scientific calculators, function graphers, and geometry packages are made available for students. Since the 1990’s a change in mathematics education has taken place because of the implementation of new ways to help students understand math a little better. This new way helps to implement information technology advancements (Tcheang, 2014).

I think the calculator is one of the biggest controls on the mind that the schools have put on students. I felt like I was always held back in math, learned only simple equation, line plotting all the time that you could just plug into the calculator, and it would spit out the answer. This form of teaching is highly manipulative and controlling, it restricts intellectual growth like a snake constricts a mouse. The standardized test with the electronic graders, these technologies have helped control not only what the students learn, how the teachers teach, and this effects the ability to retain knowledge. Humans do learn through repetition, but they also best when they can use the math they learn like having physics and calculus classes that mirror each other, or an equation that you could use in your coding class or even providing coding as an option.

For instance, most calculators solve division, subtraction, addition, and multiplication. The last examples listed are just the four main components of a basic function calculator. However, the first calculator was built up in as early as 1623 by Wilhelm Schickard. In Milestones in Computer Science and Informational Technology, writer Edwin Rielly says, “The Schickard calculator could add and subtract, but more surprisingly, it could multiply by accessing logarithms and antilogarithms through table lookup” (Rielly 39). Over time, the capacity of calculators has increased drastically. Since calculators perform mathematical equations, they can be found in many classrooms all over the world. This brings along many issues in the classroom. Since the advancements of the calculators has increased, this means that mostly any math function that is taught can be solved through a calculator. Some students choose to depend on their calculators to solve problems rather than putting in the time to learn the actual