The idea of "Math Wars" was interesting to me. It is interesting to see how politics influenced mathematics education. It never occurred to me that politics and mathematics could go hand in hand. It makes me wonder if teachers are involved in the decision of what curriculum should be, or is it just decided by politicians who might not have spent any time in classrooms.
It was also interesting to see the difference between "conservative" mathematics and "progressive" mathematics. To me, it seems like conservative mathematics focuses more on algorithms and teaching students computation based mathematics rather than teaching why mathematical concepts actually work. Progressive mathematics focuses more on exploratory thinking, it helps students understand mathematics for themselves and actually understand why mathematical concepts work. Additionally, it also helps teachers understand students skills past simple computation.
Finally, I found the switches between mathematics education interesting. For me it is hard to pinpoint where we are currently in mathematics education, I feel that I was taught with a conservative lens in mathematics even though I graduated in 2018 from high school, which is relatively recent. But from my classes it feels we are moving towards a more progressive lens in mathematics. It is interesting to see this change happening right in front of me, and it makes me think about what mathematics is going to look like even 10 years from now!
Hi Nandini, It's really interesting to hear about your perspective on the transition in mathematics education, from a more conservative approach to a progressive one. Even in such a recent timeframe, it's quite a significant change. (and I feel the same!) I'm curious about your thoughts on how this transition might affect the students of the future. What do you think will be the key factors in shaping this transformation to meet the needs of students?
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