A math professor makes the convivial play...

As all of you know (of course!), this blog's namesake comes from a book by Ivan Illich, a priest and philosopher of sorts. And so in the tradition of "Deschooling Society," I present a new criticism of educare.

Really good criticism doesn't just manifest an idea - it belies an idea which imposes a mental struggle upon the reader. And so when a math professor scourges our system of education with true wit and "the ugly truth" - I just couldn't resist.

First, I present the coup de pied bas (low kick):

Sadly, our present system of mathematics education is precisely this kind of nightmare. In fact, if I had to design a mechanism for the express purpose of destroying a child’s natural curiosity and love of pattern-making, I couldn’t possibly do as good a job as is currently being done— I simply wouldn’t have the imagination to come up with the kind of senseless, soul-crushing ideas that constitute contemporary mathematics education.

Everyone knows that something is wrong. The politicians say, “we need higher standards.” The schools say, “we need more money and equipment.” Educators say one thing, and teachers say another. They are all wrong. The only people who understand what is going on are the ones most often blamed and least often heard: the students. They say, “math class is stupid and boring,” and they are right.

Obviously the man has a point. Look at math scored world-wide and the USA begins quite strongly in the Kindergarten through Fifth grades, and quickly slopes downwards from there.

I have watched my own children's fascination with mathematics shrink and wallow in misery. It's not that they don't enjoy the concepts - it's simply become a boring monotony of testing regimes on par with the infamous "Are we there yet? Are we there yet?," et cetera.

Hence, the fouetté (whip):

Why don’t we want our children to learn to do mathematics? Is it that we don’t trust them, we think it’s too hard? We seem to feel that they are capable of making arguments and coming to their own conclusions about Napoleon, why not about triangles? I think it’s simply that we as a culture don’t know what mathematics is. The impression we are given is of something very cold and highly technical, that no one could possibly understand— a self-fulfilling prophesy if there ever was one.

It would be bad enough if the culture were merely ignorant of mathematics, but what is far worse is that people actually think they do know what math is about— and are apparently under the gross misconception that mathematics is somehow useful to society! This is already a huge difference between mathematics and the other arts. Mathematics is viewed by the culture as some sort of tool for science and technology. Everyone knows that poetry and music are for pure enjoyment and for uplifting and ennobling the human spirit (hence their virtual elimination from the public school curriculum) but no, math is important.

I believe what he's saying is quite simple - we've become focused on the applications and ultimate use of mathematics. In doing so, we've actually forgotten the factor of humanity in education. Children will only quell imagination and curiosity for so long before pronouncing a subject as boring - the death knell of active learning. Rulers, books, and verbal warnings thus become the trade of education in the latter grades.

I'm not saying it doesn't work - it just works badly for most.

Finally, the crochet(hook):

If teaching is reduced to mere data transmission, if there is no sharing of excitement and wonder, if teachers themselves are passive recipients of information and not creators of new ideas, what hope is there for their students? If adding fractions is to the teacher an arbitrary set of rules, and not the outcome of a creative process and the result of aesthetic choices and desires, then of course it will feel that way to the poor students.

Teaching is not about information. It’s about having an honest intellectual relationship with your students. It requires no method, no tools, and no training. Just the ability to be real. And if you can’t be real, then you have no right to inflict yourself upon innocent children.

My own experience in math (indeed, most of my early education) exactly mirrors these conclusions. I learned math from my physics teacher (Dr. Bob Rowe), for goodness sake. He'd challenge us, he'd even allow us to explore ideas together. He had us work endless problems, but there was almost always more than one right way to do things. I stank at physics - but the fundamental idea that solutions come in variety sticks with me to this day.

I got answers so wrong, so often that had I not been so driven - I am sure that my life would have been quite different. I am not a genius by any stretch - I merely follow ideas where they lead me no matter how preposterous they may seem in search of an answer.

That said - it's certainly not a utopian world. In fact I believe all teachers are truly desirous of those moments when their pupils "get it." Certainly pupils are of all different stripes and molds - and teaching is hard work.

But I truly appreciate this man's viewpoint, and it can be done - just not everyone will do it. So if you teach, I implore you to at least let yourself struggle with these ideas. We want our children to be able to solve problems on their own - so let them.