If the student explained that he was using a Base-11 number system, then he would be absolutely correct.
Of course, the teacher would then mark it wrong because dimes to donuts she's never hears of Base-11. They don't teach maths in edumacation school, you know.
This so applies to my day. I'm a poly sci major (useless degree, I know, except for paralegals/lawyers/cops) and I am taking a last math class to full requirements.
Turns out it's an math education class, to teach people how to teach math. I get in, it's 4 guys to 26 girls (three of us guys were filling requirements, one guy who sounded pretty gay was actually majoring in it). Two things that made me think of what you teach, Cappy.
1. Professor has us one by one say why we want to be teachers, yadayada, and all the women are talking about how they want to teach kindergarten or 1st grade, how they love kids and want to make a difference. (to which I'm thinking, 'you want to make a difference to kids, get married and have some.')
2. The professor gives us a quiz to see where we are, math speaking. Typical. What was on it, you ask? At college level? A couple examples of the problems were
What is 2 to the third power?
What is 1/4 plus 1/4?
What is .34 times .1?
I'm sitting there like, Good Lord! I appreciate having such a wide pickings of women, but seriously? The professor is quizzing us on what third grade students should know easily!
I would enjoy watching the Mexicans and Chinese fight over California. It would be worth it to declare California an open borders state just to facilitate that.
I remember in Algebra class a teacher used to give up half credit on problems if he saw we got the idea of how to do it but had just made an arithmetic mistake. But that was in algebra not basic multiplication and that was half credit. Also the half credit thing didn't apply to our final.
The big turning point in my grades came when they went from a points for correct answers to a 'points for showing workings as well'. I went from top of the class to the upper middle because I'm a guy who can solve a 4-step equation in 2 steps. Even when I'd slow down to show 'all the steps' I'd lose marks for showing the wrong step or too many. I couldn't win. My marks went up dramatically one year when I had a male teacher because his philosophy with marking was "if you got the right answer, full marks regardless of workings, if you got the wrong answer, then I look at workings". I'll bet he also spent a hell of a lot less time marking exams than the femal teachers. FYI - the shift between systems saw the top performers shift from being mostly boys to mostly girls almost overnight. Apparently the boys just needed to "apply themselves" more.
Cappy, I'll email the professor and ask for a copy of the quiz. I have the class again Thursday, hopefully I'll be able to post a link to a picture of it or something. It was so simple, I almost burst out laughing in class.
I think the School Sucks podcast covered Common Core at some point in the last year. I remember listening to a podcast where they played a pro Common Core video and commented on it. I think this might be it: http://schoolsucksproject.com/full-video-225-live-show-the-road-to-hell-is-paved-with-central-plans/
Archer, I taught sixth grade science for one year (that was more than enough). One mandatory teacher's meeting comes to mind, after reading your post. Staff were told to sit for a few minutes and take an "IQ test" at the end of the day.
This was supposed to drive home the point that aptitude testing, et al were useless baselines and students shouldn't be subjected to them. The educational director knew his audience well, nearly all of them "failed" the exam and he pointed to the problem areas, scoffing that no one could be expected to know such relationships. To put some perspective on this test, the hardest question was the following: Egg is to elliptical as tennis ball is to: a) spheroid b) cylindrical c) linear d) cubic
A perfect score on that test couldn't have indicated anything over a 90 IQ. It was like being surrounded by a group of gnomes.
not sure I got your email right (from the 'contact me' section) but here's the quiz. MATH 2008 at Kennesaw State. (not the math class for retards who failed entrance exams.) http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j98/AWB_2006/mathquiz_zps37db8556.jpg
If the student explained that he was using a Base-11 number system, then he would be absolutely correct.
ReplyDeleteOf course, the teacher would then mark it wrong because dimes to donuts she's never hears of Base-11. They don't teach maths in edumacation school, you know.
This so applies to my day. I'm a poly sci major (useless degree, I know, except for paralegals/lawyers/cops) and I am taking a last math class to full requirements.
ReplyDeleteTurns out it's an math education class, to teach people how to teach math. I get in, it's 4 guys to 26 girls (three of us guys were filling requirements, one guy who sounded pretty gay was actually majoring in it). Two things that made me think of what you teach, Cappy.
1. Professor has us one by one say why we want to be teachers, yadayada, and all the women are talking about how they want to teach kindergarten or 1st grade, how they love kids and want to make a difference. (to which I'm thinking, 'you want to make a difference to kids, get married and have some.')
2. The professor gives us a quiz to see where we are, math speaking. Typical. What was on it, you ask? At college level? A couple examples of the problems were
What is 2 to the third power?
What is 1/4 plus 1/4?
What is .34 times .1?
I'm sitting there like, Good Lord! I appreciate having such a wide pickings of women, but seriously? The professor is quizzing us on what third grade students should know easily!
Archer,
ReplyDeleteCan you get me a copy of that test and e-mail it to me or something?
Cpt.
I would enjoy watching the Mexicans and Chinese fight over California. It would be worth it to declare California an open borders state just to facilitate that.
ReplyDeleteOT:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/08/19/staggering-mich-family-violently-targeted-after-standing-against-teacher-who-molested-their-8th-grade-son/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=story&utm_campaign=Share%20Buttons
Just another example how many teachers don't care about the kids.
I remember in Algebra class a teacher used to give up half credit on problems if he saw we got the idea of how to do it but had just made an arithmetic mistake. But that was in algebra not basic multiplication and that was half credit. Also the half credit thing didn't apply to our final.
ReplyDeleteThe big turning point in my grades came when they went from a points for correct answers to a 'points for showing workings as well'.
ReplyDeleteI went from top of the class to the upper middle because I'm a guy who can solve a 4-step equation in 2 steps. Even when I'd slow down to show 'all the steps' I'd lose marks for showing the wrong step or too many. I couldn't win.
My marks went up dramatically one year when I had a male teacher because his philosophy with marking was "if you got the right answer, full marks regardless of workings, if you got the wrong answer, then I look at workings".
I'll bet he also spent a hell of a lot less time marking exams than the femal teachers.
FYI - the shift between systems saw the top performers shift from being mostly boys to mostly girls almost overnight.
Apparently the boys just needed to "apply themselves" more.
Cappy,
ReplyDeleteI'll email the professor and ask for a copy of the quiz. I have the class again Thursday, hopefully I'll be able to post a link to a picture of it or something. It was so simple, I almost burst out laughing in class.
I think the School Sucks podcast covered Common Core at some point in the last year. I remember listening to a podcast where they played a pro Common Core video and commented on it. I think this might be it: http://schoolsucksproject.com/full-video-225-live-show-the-road-to-hell-is-paved-with-central-plans/
ReplyDeleteArcher, I taught sixth grade science for one year (that was more than enough). One mandatory teacher's meeting comes to mind, after reading your post. Staff were told to sit for a few minutes and take an "IQ test" at the end of the day.
ReplyDeleteThis was supposed to drive home the point that aptitude testing, et al were useless baselines and students shouldn't be subjected to them. The educational director knew his audience well, nearly all of them "failed" the exam and he pointed to the problem areas, scoffing that no one could be expected to know such relationships. To put some perspective on this test, the hardest question was the following:
Egg is to elliptical as tennis ball is to:
a) spheroid
b) cylindrical
c) linear
d) cubic
A perfect score on that test couldn't have indicated anything over a 90 IQ. It was like being surrounded by a group of gnomes.
Hey,
ReplyDeletenot sure I got your email right (from the 'contact me' section) but here's the quiz. MATH 2008 at Kennesaw State. (not the math class for retards who failed entrance exams.) http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j98/AWB_2006/mathquiz_zps37db8556.jpg