| About 10 years ago, a new math curriculum took | | | | Math from the very beginning, I wouldn't have |
| the homeschool community by storm. Singapore | | | | known any different. But even if I could make the |
| Math, an exotic alternative to traditional math | | | | leap, there is another problem with Singapore |
| instruction, was touted as the ultimate math | | | | Math that I think is even harder to overcome, our |
| curriculum. After all, Asia was consistently | | | | teachers. |
| trouncing the United States in Math scores, and | | | | As hard as it might be for me and older U.S. |
| Singapore Math was the curriculum they were | | | | students like me to make the transition from |
| using. Whatever they were doing was working, | | | | traditional math to Singapore Math, it must be |
| and it was working very well. | | | | even harder for U.S. teachers because they are |
| Persuaded by rave reviews, homeschoolers | | | | just older students themselves. Teachers have |
| switched to Singapore Math in droves. | | | | more unlearning to do than the rest of us |
| Fortunately for me, my parents said no thanks. I | | | | because they spent more years in school and |
| was being homeschooled at the time. I was doing | | | | then they spent years teaching math the |
| just fine with my math lessons the way they | | | | traditional way. Old habits are hard to break! |
| were... nothing fancy, just ordinary, traditional | | | | As if this was not already hard enough, U.S. |
| math lessons filled with repetitive problem solving. | | | | teachers have more adjustments to make than |
| If my parents would have switched to Singapore | | | | their students. With its focus on introducing new |
| Math, I think it would have been a train wreck for | | | | concepts thoroughly, Singapore Math requires |
| them and for me. | | | | teachers to slow down and focus intensely on |
| Singapore Math's main attraction is its focus on | | | | areas the student does not understand right |
| teaching mathematical thinking instead of | | | | away. Forget about spending a few minutes to |
| repetitive problem solving. The goal is to give | | | | introduce the concept then moving on to practice |
| students an understanding of the way math | | | | drills. Teachers must be more aware of their |
| works instead of drilling formulas into their brains. | | | | students' progress and frustrations and be |
| Singapore Math students are walked through each | | | | prepared to present concepts in new ways, |
| component of the problem then presented them | | | | breaking them down more, encouraging students |
| with the whole problem to solve. The goal is to | | | | to think more, and not moving on until the |
| train students to think actively as they work | | | | student can see it and grasp it. That sounds hard! |
| through each step of a problem, instead of | | | | Despite these challenges, I really do like what |
| mindlessly plugging formulas into repetitive | | | | Singapore Math is trying to do because it makes a |
| problems. | | | | lot of sense to focus more on understanding the |
| Sounds great, right? Not if you've already been | | | | concepts than on memorizing formulas. All I'm |
| trained to learn math the old fashioned way. For | | | | trying to do is point out some stubborn realities |
| years I had learned math by working out practice | | | | that have to be dealt with and should be |
| exercises. Please don't take away my exercises | | | | considered before anyone starts using this |
| and expect me to just think about it. That is a big | | | | curriculum. Perhaps it should come with a warning |
| leap for me! | | | | label, 'Warning: This is a lot different from what |
| If my parents had started me out with Singapore | | | | you are used to! |