“They want their children’s education to resemble their education because they are successful,” [Rosenstein] explained. “They say, ‘It worked for me, why won’t it work for them?’ ”
source:
Battle Over Math in New Jersey Drives off a New Schools Chief
............................
Joseph G. (Joe) Rosenstein
I have been a member of the Mathematics Department of Rutgers University, New Brunswick, for the past 37 (!) years.
(The photograph was taken at the launch of the MetroMath Center in November 2003; it looks like I was directing a performance of the MetroMath anthem, but I was just speaking enthusiastically about the Center's vision and goals. MetroMath is described later on this page.)
In the research portion of my career, I wrote a number of articles and published a research monograph Linear Orderings (Academic Press, 1982) in textbook form.
For nearly 20 years I have been heavily involved in K-12 education. This came about as a result of my serving as Director of the Undergraduate Program in Mathematics. (Details are in my vita.) In recent years, I have been involved in the following five major kinds of enterprises that are described in more detail below:
- organizing and directing professional development programs for K-12 teachers of mathematics,
- strengthening mathematics education in New Jersey through developing the NJ Mathematics Curriculum Framework,
- directing the New Jersey Mathematics Coalition,
- organizing and serving as founding director of the MetroMath Center, and
- writing instructional materials for K-12 teachers focused on discrete mathematics.
(In another arena, I have developed and published a new prayerbook for the morning service of Shabbat and festivals entitled Siddur Eit Ratzon; it is available for review and purchase at www.newsiddur.org.)
............................
And see: Beyond TERC
Joseph G. (Joe) Rosenstein homepage
Joseph G. (Joe) Rosenstein at ktm-2
thanks, Joe
This is from the 1996 New Jersey Math Framework:
ReplyDelete"The widespread availability of computing and calculating technology has
given us the opportunity to reconceive the role of computation and numerical operations in our third and fourth grade mathematics programs. Traditionally, tremendous amounts of time were spent at these levels
helping children to develop proficiency and accuracy with
paper-and-pencil procedures. Now, adults needing to perform calculations
quickly and accurately have electronic tools that are both more accurate
and more efficient than those procedures. "
The 1996 NJ Framework also says this:
"The major shift in the curriculum that will take place in this realm,
therefore, is one away from drill and practice of paper-and-pencil
procedures with symbols and toward real-world applications of
operations, wise choices of appropriate computational strategies, and
integration of the numerical operations with other components of the
mathematics curriculum."
Thanks Joe! This is why I've got my kids in Kumon.
Robyn
Hey Joe .. you forgot to mention your NSF grant money ...
ReplyDeleteIts why I got my kids in Kumon too.
oh yeah.... I'd love to know how much consulting money he's raking in. Look at that photo. He's not doing that for free.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of 'free,' it's probably time I put up some Google ads and started raking in the big bucks.
full disclosure: as the co-founder of ktm, I have received a free book from a publisher.
ReplyDelete'A' free book meaning 1 free book.
I'm sure someone will send me on a junket any day now.
ReplyDelete"Metro Math has two main focuses - research and the development of leadership in urban mathematics."
ReplyDeleteUrban Mathematics. Is this a new branch of mathematics? Apparently, they are not deveoping urban mathematics, just the leadership.
If you look at Metro Math, the underlying theme is that the problems are external. At best, they are interested in getting and keeping qualified math teachers.
The impression I always get when I read things like this is low expectations. This is not just for some carefully selected cases where external problems can be great. It's low expectations for all urban kids. They look at kids statistically, rather than look at kids individually.
What about urban children who have a decent home life and enough food and health insurance. They don't have a chance because they are "urban". Schools only care about raising averages or gaps. They don't look at individual opportunity, drive, and merit.
Too many see the goal as improving things a little bit because they cannot believe that there are fundamental flaws in the system starting in Kindergarten. Ruth Simmons, the president of Brown University, donated $25000 of her own money to buy graphing calculators for the entire ninth grade of Hope High School.
"When Texas Instruments approached her about its Algebra in Motion project, Simmons thought, 'Why not do this in Providence?'"
This is nice, but it's really not helping these kids much. The problem is not that they are "urban" kids. The problem is that K-8 math really stinks. Kids don't need discovery or hands-on math. They need schools that set high expectations and make sure that mastery of skills gets done, starting in Kindergarten. High school is too late. They need schools that give individual kids the chance they deserve, not just lump them as "urban" and are happy if they just get through Algebra in Motion in high school.
They redefine math to make it easier, they accept all sorts of external excuses for lower expectations, they don't provide separate paths for talented individuals(heck, anyone willing to work hard), they fail to recognize all of the home teaching and tutoring that goes on in non-urban districts, they don't like it when technical professionals tell them that there are serious problems with math curricula, and then they wonder why such a big academic gap exists.
Incredible.
I think Joe may have gotten a little ahead of himself:
ReplyDeleteI believe that New Jersey has not experienced the "math wars" because we have involved all stakeholders in the process of developing the standards and framework, we have used common sense in drafting our documents, and, serendipitously, we have avoided the politicization of mathematics education."
How's that for having your own words come back to bite 'ya?
The source of the quote is as follows: http://dimacs.rutgers.edu/~joer/texas.html
ReplyDelete