Milford chronicle., 1956-03-16

subjects can profitably be used in
helping students acquire the par
ticular skiIIs and techniques that
are essential to success in the
study of the various branches OF
mathematics For too long a time
it has been assumed that reading is
reading much the same regardless
of the field A student may be
very proficient in reading history.
social studies, or the n0n-mathe-
maticaI sciences, and yet fail mis-
erably in the various branches of
mathematics and the mathematical
sciences.
In the case of arithmetic, much
research has been uone to discover
the most outstanding stumbling
blocks for students these stumb-
ling blocks have been found to be:
I'D their failure to form a mental
picture of what the problem tells
and what il asks; (21 their failure
to know precisely the meanings of
the various symbols, words or
terms used in problems; 90 their
failure TO realize that problem in
mathematics must be read and re-
read TO get all the facts and to fix
Them in mind before computation is
begun; IA Eheir failure to adapt
the rate of reading to the purpose
at hand. M2ny students persist in
reading problems in mathematics
at about the same rate as other
material; consequently, when they
r. @Ts,vV -
confused. Mathematics problems
require slow, careful, thorough
reading.
Carelessness in computation is
also the cause of many failures.
Many of the more capable students,
daa to carelessness and tie tend
ency 10 rush through comp atations,
make errors that would be detected
if sufficient time were taken to
check carefully the various opera
tions. AS a result the answers to
many problems are fantastic and
the students themselves on due re-
lection recognize the unreaAc r.
ableness of their results. Closely
associated with this tendency to
rush is carelessneSs in writing fig
dres and symbols. Such habits can
be corrected If the student will
make the effort, but poor work and
study habits are not too easy to
break; as a consequence, many
capable students tend to take the
path of least resistance and elect
less exacting courses.
Parents can help their children
in elementary and high school by
checking them on the data given
in the problems and in deciding
upon the right operation to use.
knowing the right operation or OPP
erations to use is just as important
as knowing how to perform the op-
erations
Parents can also help their chill
lren, not by solving problems for
them, but rather by quizzing them
on how to solve problems without
using numbers, as, for example,:
"a If you know the price of one
quart of milk how would you find
the price of gallOw? ~ II you
knew the cost of an article to a
merchant and the profit he made
when ne S0Id II, now would you Hnu
the cost to the buyer?
There is another cause of failure
in the field of mathematics which
should be noted and which can be
corrected-th belief on the part
OF many students and parents that
if the parents had difficulty in the
study of mathematics, the children
are apt to have similar difficulty.
This belief is without foundation.
Parents, often without thinking,
may make some comment in the
presence of a child to the effect
that he or she experienced diff
Guilty with mathematics and in
some way suggest to the child that
the child, too, may find mathernat-
les to be difficult Instead of being