I had a calculus prof that let us bring in small formula cheat sheets to tests. He casully mentioned offhand then when he was doing his physics undergrad 40 years prior they had 10x more formulas and they had to memorize all of them.
We have kids who have trouble doing basic, two digit multiplication and even addition because they have to stop and think about if 2x6=12. That' crazy; you shouldn't have to look that up or even think about it much.
Now, there are many ways of committing things to our memory; it doesn't have to only be rote learning (although that is one way and should be used when appropriate), but it is rather important at the basic level just because it makes the more advanced things come more easily.
I wasn't trying to say that kids should be using reference charts every time they wanted to do basic arithmetic, although I didn't qualify my statement I admit. I'm thinking more along the lines of the formulas that I used cheat sheets for in engineering. It didn't hurt my learning development to not learn all that stuff, the cheating I did was more than satisfactory, and the way I would do it in rea world application.
Yes, no -- depends upon the level and what is being taught. At the college level, being able to know and find is more important.
At the elementary level some things really do need to be taught by rote, committed to memory, and made so commonplace that you don't have to really think about them (kinda like driving a car).
Unfortunately, a lot of curriculum/pedagogy 'specialists' have taken the tack that memory learning is not good even at the kindergarten level...and thus we have kids who can't do basic math or spelling/grammar...who turn into adults who really can't do it well either.
Couldn't you extend that argument to the multiplication tables? Why remember that 12x12=144 if you can just look up a calculator (or a written table)? Or the alphabet, for that matter.
People use that excuse: when I have a job I will be able to google anything, what's the point of memorizing? The point is to set the bar as high as possible so your degree actually has prestiege.
Memory is a skill that can be developed like any other. Schools stopped teaching it decades ago and now we have voters who can't remember what happened before the previous election. Coincidence?
Some people can memorize better than others. Why shoulden't people learn the extent of what they are actually capable of while in school? Higher education should be difficult.
I had a calculus prof that let us bring in small formula cheat sheets to tests. He casully mentioned offhand then when he was doing his physics undergrad 40 years prior they had 10x more formulas and they had to memorize all of them.
I agree completely. As long as kids know what to do and why they are doing it, they don't need to memorize what they can simply reference.
We have kids who have trouble doing basic, two digit multiplication and even addition because they have to stop and think about if 2x6=12. That' crazy; you shouldn't have to look that up or even think about it much.
Now, there are many ways of committing things to our memory; it doesn't have to only be rote learning (although that is one way and should be used when appropriate), but it is rather important at the basic level just because it makes the more advanced things come more easily.
I wasn't trying to say that kids should be using reference charts every time they wanted to do basic arithmetic, although I didn't qualify my statement I admit. I'm thinking more along the lines of the formulas that I used cheat sheets for in engineering. It didn't hurt my learning development to not learn all that stuff, the cheating I did was more than satisfactory, and the way I would do it in rea world application.
Why dont you just listen to the unbiased antischooling post
Yes, no -- depends upon the level and what is being taught. At the college level, being able to know and find is more important. At the elementary level some things really do need to be taught by rote, committed to memory, and made so commonplace that you don't have to really think about them (kinda like driving a car). Unfortunately, a lot of curriculum/pedagogy 'specialists' have taken the tack that memory learning is not good even at the kindergarten level...and thus we have kids who can't do basic math or spelling/grammar...who turn into adults who really can't do it well either.
Couldn't you extend that argument to the multiplication tables? Why remember that 12x12=144 if you can just look up a calculator (or a written table)? Or the alphabet, for that matter.
How does
not
apply to multiplication tables?
People use that excuse: when I have a job I will be able to google anything, what's the point of memorizing? The point is to set the bar as high as possible so your degree actually has prestiege.
Memory is a skill that can be developed like any other. Schools stopped teaching it decades ago and now we have voters who can't remember what happened before the previous election. Coincidence?
Some people can memorize better than others. Why shoulden't people learn the extent of what they are actually capable of while in school? Higher education should be difficult.
Interesting that memorization techniques are rarely taught.
The pos wants them dumb
So true