Current Events > Firefighter DESTROYS modern math teaching

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://youtu.be/MYk3tsUH1x8

Its a bit long but you get the point of the video by a minute in.


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I've had experience with this shit through babysitting and it's the dumbest fucking shit

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JFC
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wackyteen posted...

https://youtu.be/MYk3tsUH1x8

Its a bit long but you get the point of the video by a minute in.

I'm thirty seconds in and the lady just started doing math because she spoke first. If this was a timed experiment, they should have started at the same time and no talking.

If it wasn't a timed experiment, then let me know so I'll resume the video.

Like I'm sorry that change is hard for people, but smart people learned to do it the way on the right without being taught. It is a more difficult concept to get to begin with, but ultimately is faster and allows you to do much more complex calculations in your head.

realnifty1 posted...

Like I'm sorry that change is hard for people, but smart people learned to do it the way on the right without being taught. It is a more difficult concept to get to begin with, but ultimately is faster and allows you to do much more complex calculations in your head.

Which method are you referring to? Grammar fam.

sLaCkEr408___RJ posted...

Which method are you referring to? Grammar fam.

I didn't waste time watching the video but common core math is only hard for people who didn't grow up on it, it's actually quite clever and allows you to do big equations without memorizing all the intricacies of the old way

Or as the rest of the millennials put it "change! Change bad!"

You aren't teaching multiplication really at that point either. It's practically turning it into an addition problem instead, and it makes it difficult for more advanced math down the line. I have two friends who learned this way, and neither of them can do more experienced math. This might help up through basic high school algebra, but once you try to go further, it's likely going to road block. Plus, it takes up a hell of a lot more space on the paper.

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Obviously, someone who's experienced at math is gonna be better than someone who's multiplying to teach children
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awesome999 posted...

Obviously, someone who's experienced at math is gonna be better than someone who's multiplying to teach children

Exactly. This video is a waste of time. The firefighter isn't trying to explain the concept to anyone
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I would have failed that klass. I wasn't bad at basic math, but my slow writing and tiny attention span would get through like 3 or 4 of these per hour.

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What the fuck. Is that the common core bullshit that out of touch morons keep trying to push?

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Captain_Qwark posted...

The way she's teaching is the intelligent way to do multiplication.

Especially in your head. Doing the standard way in your head is too hard for most people

Trying to keep up with a square is infinitely harder than envisioning the fire fighters method in your head.

45 X 35 is easier to do in a 3 step (45 X 30, 45 X 5 then add) process than breaking it down into some multi step square that involves making 40 + 5, 30 + 5, and multiplying each number then adding 4 numbers

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Or just do 35 * 10 and 35 * 2 and add them together

420

Did that is 1 sec

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Sexypwnstar posted...

Or just do 35 * 10 and 35 * 2 and add them together

420

Did that is 1 sec

That's what they are doing (with extra steps).
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Older people are so resistant to this, then they wonder why no one wants to go into mathematics-heavy fields as a career. This way works a lot better for more people, and far fewer people are deterred from eventually learning higher maths.

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Goddamn, that is way too much work for only one problem, and back in the day, we has like up to and over 50 problems to do on one assignment.

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Xavier_On_High posted...

Older people are so resistant to this, then they wonder why no one wants to go into mathematics-heavy fields as a career. This way works a lot better for more people, and far fewer people are deterred from eventually learning higher maths.

or git gud

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wackyteen posted...

Trying to keep up with a square is infinitely harder than envisioning the fire fighters method in your head.

45 X 35 is easier to do in a 3 step (45 X 30, 45 X 5 then add) process than breaking it down into some multi step square that involves making 40 + 5, 30 + 5, and multiplying each number then adding 4 numbers

Sexypwnstar posted...

Or just do 35 * 10 and 35 * 2 and add them together

420

Did that is 1 sec

They're using the same method except they're breaking both numbers instead of just one. And multiplying two numbers with one leading digit and followed with zeroes is much easier to do than multiplying one two digit number.with two one digit numbers (well at the beginner level anyway)
Not to mention this method is also useful for beginner algebra
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NeonOctopus posted...

or git gud

This method gives more children a chance to eventually git gud, instead of just making the subject seem impenetrable and turning them off from a young age.

Honestly, for decades maths has consistently been the least favourite subject of most children, because Western education systems removed the classical education attitude of teaching the theory, and just turned it into a repetition and memorisation exercise because it was cheap and easy, and because no one with a degree in mathematics wanted to go into teaching.

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Both are too slow. We have the internet now we dont need knowledge.

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Captain_Qwark posted...

The square is just to help kids learn

25x25
20 20 = 400
20x5 = 100
20x5 =100
5x5 = 25

Way easier to do in your head

No it isn't. I can do 25x25 in my head. I can't break it apart into that overcomplicated nonsense in my head.

TheOtherMike posted...

I can't break it apart into that overcomplicated nonsense in my head.

Because you didn't learn. Kids these days are learning how to break it apart.

Duh

sLaCkEr408___RJ posted...

Because you didn't learn.

Yes I did.

just like an anime show, the teacher is just filling up the episode length

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If only boomers could put half as much energy into actually useful things as they do into crusading against Common Core

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There are plenty of issues with common core but I dont trust anyone without a background in a disciplines pedagogy to discuss them

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People love to shit on these teaching methods but the point isn't to go through drawing this box every time, it's to teach you how you can do operations on large numbers on the fly WITHOUT needing a pencil. By breaking the numbers into more easily understandable component parts, you can use the multiplication tables you know to operate on the components. Then unite the products into the actual number.

I basically figured out a method similar to this since early life and I've always been able to do big multiplications and such in my head, sometimes faster than someone can reach for a calculator.

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Firefighter didn't explain his work.

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The common core method would probably actually be pretty good for learning other bases than decimal if you already know decimal.

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i don't understand why everyone is so angry at this?

it's like you people are angry that the woman's method takes longer when...yeah no shit it's because she's explaining it and not doing it as fast as possible.

tf is wrong y'all

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NeonOctopus posted...

What the fuck. Is that the common core bullshit that out of touch morons keep trying to push?

@NeonOctopus can u explain the issue to me idg why you're angry

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TheOtherMike posted...

Yes I did.

Then why can't you do it?

Captain_Qwark posted...

The square is just to help kids learn

25x25
20 20 = 400
20x5 = 100
20x5 =100
5x5 = 25

Way easier to do in your head

25*20 = 25*2*10 = 50*10 = 500
25*5 = 25*4+25 = 100+25 = 125
500+125=625

That's roughly how I do it in my head, broken down into smaller steps that I usually do automatically.
But, yeah, common core is all about:
1) Teaching various methods to solve the same problem
2) Teaching why those methods work, not rote memorization.

The firefighter effectively misses the entire point. Lots of people, especially older people, dislike math because they think it's just memorization - whether it be concepts or times tables. I've high school and college kids in math for 10 years now. One of the main issues they have is in failing to understand why things work and instead just copying the steps of how to do it. You see the same thing everyday in IT, too.

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MSCMC posted...

i don't understand why everyone is so angry at this?

it's like you people are angry that the woman's method takes longer when...yeah no shit it's because she's explaining it and not doing it as fast as possible.

tf is wrong y'all

My teacher friends back home that do this pretty much say that parents who have to help their kids with their math homework, get frustrated that they don't know how to do it (even though teachers send instructional packets and contact info for help) and then just complain about how horrible this teaching method is.

It's kind of the same thing here. People with no experience teaching kids complaining about something they don't understand and refuse to give a chance.

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I have seen a number of people do this.
And it is always the same. Someone is doing a problem while someone else is teaching. The fact that people think that is showing something , really floors me .

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ChocoboMog123 posted...

25*20 = 25*2*10 = 50*10 = 500
25*5 = 25*4+25 = 100+25 = 125
500+125=625

That's roughly how I do it in my head, broken down into smaller steps that I usually do automatically.
But, yeah, common core is all about:
1) Teaching various methods to solve the same problem
2) Teaching why those methods work, not rote memorization.

The firefighter effectively misses the entire point. Lots of people, especially older people, dislike math because they think it's just memorization - whether it be concepts or times tables. I've high school and college kids in math for 10 years now. One of the main issues they have is in failing to understand why things work and instead just copying the steps of how to do it. You see the same thing everyday in IT, too.

Wouldn't this method require a lot of memorization too, if you have a more difficult set of numbers that aren't just base 5 or 10? Something like 86 * 78?

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Firefighter knows how to do math. Good for him. This is an elementary school teacher teaching kids, of course it's going to take longer and have to explain each step in detail, kids are new to the concept.

Common Core is different, but my whole thing is, for years leading up to common core everyone complained that our education system was behind a lot of other countries. We try to improve the system, but then everyone complains "That's not how we learned!" yeah no shit, because everyone complained that the way you learned wasn't up to par. It's also because a lot of parents are insecure that they can't help their kids with the homework because it wasn't the exact way they learned and so just by that basis it must be wrong.

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the point of the modern way is you can easily do it in your head quickly

the problem is schools expect kids to show their work

if you have to show your work then the old fashioned way is better, because showing your work with the modern way takes much longer

its a stupid paradox. schools need to get rid of the whole "show your work" thing if they want the modern way to be useful. if a kid wants to cheat hes gonna cheat regardless of if he has to show his work. its just pointless.

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cjsdowg posted...

I have seen a number of people do this.
And it is always the same. Someone is doing a problem while someone else is teaching. The fact that people think that is showing something , really floors me .

I still think it's slower over all but I guess it might be faster for brand new learners.

But it feels like a tool that you should drop once you can properly handle larger (than multiplication tables) numbers in your head.

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Anyways they should just teach speed math

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfNlKECWMeo

^ Was a great video series I watched a while back, too bad that shit is private now?


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Damn, you guys multiply by hand?

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Garioshi posted...

Damn, you guys multiply by hand?

I've seen grown adults bust out a calculator for something like 32 X 8

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wackyteen posted...

I've seen grown adults bust out a calculator for something like 32 X 8

Why not?

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wackyteen posted...

I've seen grown adults bust out a calculator for something like 32 X 8

lol this, I don't think I ever actually used long division or multiplication on paper since like 6th grade. Even working as an engineer, you always have a phone calculator or excel.

Note: long division does make a big come back in algebra w/ polynomial long division and you have to simplify huge fractions w/ variables, I remember that being a huge pain in the ass. Does Common Core have an answer for that one yet?

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AngelsNAirwav3s posted...

lol this, I don't think I ever actually used long division or multiplication on paper since like 6th grade. Even working as an engineer, you always have a phone calculator or excel.

Note long division does make a big come back in algebra w/ polynomial long division and you have to simplify huge fractions w/ variables, I remember that being a huge pain in the ass. Does Common Core have an answer for that one yet?

You mean synthetic division?

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cjsdowg posted...

I have seen a number of people do this.
And it is always the same. Someone is doing a problem while someone else is teaching. The fact that people think that is showing something , really floors me .

right? i feel like everyone itt has to be in on some elaborate prank

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