Little need for calculators in middle schools

Time to beat a dead horse... or in this case, reincarnate it and then have at it again.  Yes, we're going there: calculators in the classroom.  This debate was a full scale battle for ten years once the adoption of the 1991 National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) Curriculum and Evaluation Standards recommended that "every teacher at every level promote the use of calculators to enhance mathematics instruction."  But for some strange reason, the outcries seem to have just faded away.  No recent articles or arguments have been posted since the early 2000's.  Why is that?  It was such a heated debate, it seemed almost as never-ending as the Mac vs. PC situation we have at our hands today.

But in all seriousness, let's look at this topic from a fresh perspective after a few new years of technological advancement, which, as we know, is leaps and bounds ahead of where we were from just the turn of the century.  Looking at one of the older articles from 2002 which, at the time, maintained the discussion, both sides seemed pretty even in their respective weights.  For example, a proponent could argue that graphing calculators help students understand calculus break-even points when intersecting two variable graphs of cost and revenue.  That is very reasonable and easily defended.  Instead, let's discuss the use of calculators for simple mathematical calculations that, until as of late, were all learned on a multiplication times tables in primary school.

In the Teachers Manual of one of the math textbooks that a Washington State School District uses, the following is explained on the topic of long division: "Mastery of the intricacies such as algorithms is a huge endeavor, one that experience tells us is doomed to failure for many students.  It is simply counter-productive to invest many hours of previous class time on such algorithms.  The mathematical payoff is not worth the cost, particularly because quotients can be found quickly and accurately with a calculator."

Weren't education authorities supposed to be optimistic?  Now, it's great to be a proponent for technology to help understand a desired concept in a given topic, but for some reason this statements jumps out as a bit concerning.  This may be too brash of an assumption, but isn't there a large difference between using software to plot and analyze a set of data than to thoughtlessly plug in the problem and immediately receive the answer?

With strong statements such as these shifting the calculator paradigm, these little super-computers have become rampant in middle schools where typically a foundation of algebra is nurtured and maintained. So how does that affect our students that go to college today? In an October 2009 report released by ENLACE Florida, "over 20,000 state university students in Florida either withdrew or did not receive a passing grade in key math courses required for them to fulfill university requirements during the 2007-2008 academic year."  In other words, these are not math-heavy courses that require terribly advanced logical or mathematical reasoning.  These are rudimentary basic courses like College Algebra and Trigonometry that any student, regardless of discipline should be able to pass and succeed in.  Now, please don't be that critic who gleefully points to Florida Virtual Schools as the scapegoat for a figure like this without considering the facts.  All states have pass/fail rates similar to this.  States like California and Michigan are concerned about the very same issues.  Just as the New York Times points out that math aptitude was higher before the passing of "No Child Left Behind", we are beginning to see the aftermath that the act has had on a state's ability to oversee their curriculum (inside and outside of mathematics).

Unless that is, the goals of math education are changing before our very eyes. In other words, should we even have students understand how numbers work?  Because if not, then let's move on to concepts and story problems and forget about algorithms while calculators do all of that "mish-mash."  But then what happens to trigonometry, to algebra, to calculus?  Most lesson plans within these math subjects thrive on a solid familiarity of simple math concepts and calculations.  When trying to FOIL, does one take out her calculator to find out what 13 * 3 equals?  It takes a student twice as long to do such a simple process when thoughtlessly punching the numbers into a calculator.  I've seen it… even in a rather well-off 8th grade class.  How disheartening it was to know these students were going to be taking calculus one day when a student tugged on my sleeve and pointed to a double digit multiplication problem asked, "How do I multiply this out?"

Outside of square roots and logarithms (Not mental math), let's get serious about the level of usage of these potent little pieces of technology in the non-high school classrooms.  They are extremely beneficial to understanding high school and college math concepts, but is it really all that justifiable in the long run to save your own skin as a middle school teacher for a student to have good grades because of using a calculator, only to later let the student struggle in college calculus?

No more textbooks?

Remember that poor 4-foot-tall boy who toppled over with the backpack that weighed as much as he did?  Well, it seems like we're approaching a time when he'll just have to bring his electronic reader to school.  Maybe a few folders, too.

Introducing the Amazon Kindle - a thin, lightweight, electronic reader that holds up to 1,500 books (3,500 for the DX version) in the palm of your hand.  We don't necessarily have to showcase the Kindle, really.  For the point at hand, any electronic reader will do (Amazon just happens to be the most obvious to use an example for price, use, etc.).  What becomes so fascinating however is the potential this could yield for the educational field.  At first glance this hand held device is a bit pricey at $259.  But we know this is temporary.  After all, just looking at the iPhone's initial release of $599 is laughable when comparing to today's Apple advertisement of a mere $99.  It's only a matter of time before technology becomes financially accessible to everyone and reaches critical mass market share.

Electronic readers will be no exception, and now that publishing companies are catching on so will schools.  Speaking about publishers, let's consider textbooks.  Consulting a few teachers, it was found that on average, a school buys a set of textbooks to last 8-10 years, and a textbook, depending on its subject, could vary between $65 and $90 a pop when buying in bulk.  Now we know our students take excellent care of these textbooks during the 9 months they borrow them, but every once in a while a student enjoys a textbook so very much that she decides to make personal notes in it or keep it and use it through college.  With publishers pumping out new editions of textbooks every other year, it becomes a bit frustrating when trying to order just a few textbooks to replenish your school's supply, only to find it has been discontinued from print.  There may be a few extra copies of this History textbook at the Texas used book depository...that is if you don't mind a chapter of history being Texas State history instead."

When an electronic reader decreases only $150 to an inevitable $99, a school could possibly begin integrating electronic readers into the curriculum, encouraging families to buy their students a reader that would last them their 4 years of high school.  Now, all that a school would have to put up front would be a minimal cost per site license of an e-textbook.  With everything being wireless, the school could control which students view which textbooks after registering each student's reader.  Whether or not this is all even possible right now, companies like CourseSmart are beginning to emerge that are on the right track.

Critics may argue that an electronic reader just can't compare to a true textbook, one where students can actually search through the pages, bookmark, look at multiple pages at the flip of a hand, etc.  True, this may affect studying in the traditional sense.  But how different is this to the development of printed works over oratory?  Or video over printed works?  Or MP3 over CD, even, a debate that still rages over fanatics clinging to their jewel cases and special-release booklets for dear life.  It's guaranteed, some little things will be lost in the transition, and not everyone will operate on e-documents everywhere, but it appears that society has time and time again voted for the more convenient over the traditional.

Like the teachers at Montgomery County where "each employee has a monthly limit of copies" or are being "urged to reconsider their paper-dependent ways," they can now look at an electronic reader and see the potential to distribute PDF worksheets to a student's hand held device.  Why not continue with this idea and flirt with teacher accessibility?  It doesn't seem too far away when students can submit their completed worksheets over a 3G network, and an instructor can take his 1/3 inch reader home to grade their students' papers instead of stacks upon stacks of paper-clipped and stapled packets of paper.  A teacher really could take his work wherever he goes, grading papers on the subway, on the plane, or even standing in line at the bank--all without the need to set up a home base of operations, papers scattered everywhere about him.  User friendliness and screen size to make it feasible to navigate through different textbooks and assignments would undoubtedly come with time.

I can see the advertising slogan now: "Heavy backpacks: Now a thing of the past!"

*Update* 6/3/2010 : The future has arrived!  Seen here in this article, one Florida school does exactly this!

No more sick days?

Unless being bedridden with a dreadful case of the flu, most sick days involve a student simply moseying around the house, snacking on chips and watching a movie or playing video games to pass the time as he or she gets well.  Upon their return to school two days later, they may discovery mounds of homework from their 3 AP classes, as well as the workload from the current day.  It's enough to overwhelm anybody.

These poor students can be helped.  We have rather simple technology these days that teachers can tap into and assist a student's recovery from sickness back into the classroom with unnoticeable ease.  Introducing streaming audio, podcasts, or, even easier: Skype video chat.  "Skype is software that enables the world's conversations. Millions of individuals and businesses use Skype to make free video and voice calls, send instant messages and share files with other Skype users. Everyday, people also use Skype to make low-cost calls to landlines and mobiles."

Is the student really playing hooky?  Have him log in to find out. Poor sick Johnny can now pop up on the classroom's TV screen to interact, raise his hand to ask a question, and even speak into a microphone to converse with the other students.  To prevent a student from abusing the system, maybe only a handful of those would be considered excused absences from class.  Don't have a video camera or want to activate one?  Might have to have some stricter attendance rules.  Just listening to the teacher over the speaker isn't too different from sitting in the corner of the class, blindfolded and turned around... which isn't necessarily interactive.

But should we force students and parents to buy such expensive technology like video cameras and broadband internet?  Let's get up to speed with the facts (pun intended).  High-speed internet is becoming more and more necessary and accessible, even in lower income households. The Pew Research Center just reported in June that homes with annual household incomes below $30,000 experienced a 34% growth in home broadband adoption from 2008 to 2009.  Also, what with school supplies, new clothing, and a new iPod and cell phone the student isn't supposed to take to school in the first place, a decent video chat camera these days is hardly a drop in the bucket when only about $25.

Not only could it help students on sick days, it could shift support to the other side of the spectrum for the teachers as well.  Is it virtually impossible for a California history teacher to have a National Museum scholar from D.C. speak to her class?  It used to be.  With Skype, there are many examples cropping up of teachers hosting authoritative and credible guest speakers in their classrooms with this free and easy-to-use software.  Heck, there's even a possibility that the teacher/professor herself can teach from home for a lesson if on a sick day.

All of a sudden, a whole new world is available.  A teacher isn't on the educational battlefield alone anymore; he or she has an arsenal of an endless list of government officials, professionals, research experts, or even motivational guest speakers to augment the day's lesson plans, keeping a class excited and guessing on where they are going and having a say on how they want to learn (almost Montessori-like).  Such exciting technology could make anyone envious of the resources today's youth have in the classroom.  As a matter of fact, I wouldn't mind living high school history class all over again.