On Thu, Aug 27, 2009 at 4:55 PM, Peter Jeremy<peterjer...@optushome.com.au> wrote: > Sage is an excellent tool for taking the drugery out of doing maths > but elementary school is more about the fundamentals of arithmetic. > Sage (or any pocket calculator) can do '14+17' but I would be really > concerned about a generation of children who couldn't solve '14+17' > _without_ a pocket calculator.
I'll reply with a quote by by Seymour Papert """ Some people might object that it is useless to have children understand algebra when they don’t know how to multiply 78543 by 17629. I have four answers. Take your pick – each one is sufficient for my point. First, algebra captures a way of thinking that is far more important in life (both practical life and intellectual life) than multiplying big numbers. Second, a calculator multiplies better. Third, if it is necessary to know how to multiply this can be learned far more quickly and far less painfully after learning how to think mathematically. The fourth answer, and perhaps the most important, is expressed in the words of my mentor, the late Bob Davis who used to say: “School math teaches the art of getting the right answer without thinking.” Intensive practice of mechanical skills before one knows enough to fully understand them is a great inhibitor of creative thinking. """ It is worth reading the whole article at http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Learning_Learning/Parable_3 Best, Gonzalo --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ To post to this group, send an email to sage-devel@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to sage-devel-unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/sage-devel URLs: http://www.sagemath.org -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
