Math Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Math - Essay Example The writer compares the ordeal underwent by these discipline to that facing mathematics in the contemporary world. The teachers have oriented there students towards believing that cramming formulas is the only best way to pass mathematics. The students do not get the chance of knowing the various dimensions since they only have to substitute the given values in the formula. Lockhart argues that the belief inflicted by the teachers is what makes the student perceive mathematics as no art. Lockhart presents a conversation between Simplicio and Salviati who go on to stress about the failure of the teachers to make mathematics easy to their students (Lockhart 6). The conversation brings a reader to realizing that the teachers only require the students to master the techniques without considering the context and the whole process. The failure by the standard mathematics curriculum triggers Lockhart to propose the relivening of aesthetic in mathematics as the only way to promote the love f or this subject. He disapproves the so called â€Å"ladder myth† associated with the contemporary mathematics. The ladder myth makes students to concentrate only on the theory part without considering how the structures of the questions came to be; consequently diminishing the art nature. The writer concludes by proposing a standard school mathematic curriculum whereby lower school math students consist of the explanation about the origin of various mathematics aspects. The last part of the curriculum is Calculus. Question 2 I agree with Lockhart’s view that the curriculum has fabricated the real mathematical model to a sculpture that scares the students away. The contemporary mathematics education has forced the students to go direct into mastering the techniques and not appraising the real context and process (Lockhart 4). This design acts as the basis for the witnessed failure by most students to embrace the existence of mathematics. Most of the students get scared at the first view of a â€Å"long formula†, such as that for calculating surface area of a cylinder (2?r2 + 2?rh). The teacher requires the students to master this formula otherwise they will not get the right answer. This has acted as the most surprising part of the modern education. As stated by Lockhart, the curriculum, teachers included, do not understand that the students need to get a broader perception about the context implied. Lockhart’s comparison of math to art proves strong since the involved teacher could have broken the surface area of a cylinder as the sum of the surface area of the two circles (at the top and bottom) plus that of the area of the triangle (2?rh). Considering the nature of math teaching, the educators should be fully responsible for making math interesting to the kids. The educators have failed in recovering the need for studying and embracing math. The curriculum accentuates that the only expectation from math education is to perform wel l in the subject while living out the need for real knowledge useful in the long run. It orients the students to believe that cracking the exams is the basis for studying math. The educators need to realize that the math students are just like other human beings who usually become at ease with something they can relate to. As asserted by Lockhart, they should consider making math curriculum be practical and relevant to the kids’