Failing in Math? Left
In an article written earlier this year, I talked about the learning difficulties facing students today. The reform of the school curriculum, as well as the quality of teaching, are two main reasons that lead to demotivated students in mathematics. These, however, are extrinsic and uncontrollable factors. Consequently, I would like to place more emphasis on intrinsic factors, so that both parents and students can do something to improve their math.
1. Assessment – Math Fright Index: (mark from 1 to 5 where 1 = strongly disagree and 5 = strongly agree)
1. I am concerned that my math report card is lower than the class average.
2. I don’t like my math class at school.
3. I don’t know how to do math questions at school.
4. I think I am illiterate in mathematics.
5. I need someone to teach me and give me extra help.
6. I worry about losing my competitive edge in my career because of my lack of math skills.
7. Mathematics is just one type of intelligence. Although I’m not good at it, I still have other types of intelligence.
8. I’m not good with numbers.
9. Word problems scare and worry me all the time.
10. I don’t know how to apply mathematics in my daily life.
Add up your total score.
If you are: 10 – 18: You are very confident and at the top of your math class.
19 – 26: You can easily catch up to be top of the class.
27 – 34: You are not alone. Most of the students are just like you. Work a little more and you’ll pass.
35 – 42: You are not confident enough in math and need extra help.
43 – 50: You should find a professional consultant and get immediate assistance.
2. After taking the assessment to find out where your child ranks in terms of math, you need to find out specifically what kinds of problems he or she is facing. Below are several frequently asked questions from parents.
A. How come my children always get good grades on their homework but fail their tests? To answer this problem, we have to find out if they really understand the concept of homework exercises. When doing their homework, many children like to ask for the answer without wanting to understand how to get to it. Some kids need tutors just to help them with their homework, but critical thinking is much more important and valuable than getting the answer right.
b. Does buying exercise books for my child help?
Doing a lot of exercises can help sometimes, but often children just become robots, doing the same repetitive things without thinking. Some children are even worse and memorize the answer key. The workbooks are mainly for more advanced students who want to solve more challenging problems.
vs How do I know if my child really understands the concept or just pretends to understand it?
Whenever teachers ask students if they understand or not, most answer with a ‘yes’. However, later, when the teacher gives a similar exercise using the same concept, most of the students cannot respond. In a typical classroom, each teacher is assigned to teach as many students with different levels of IQ and comprehension. Therefore, it is almost impossible for a teacher to diagnose the specific problems of each student. Luckily, many parents accompany their elementary school children with homework to find out exactly where the problem is. Unfortunately, this is rarely the case for high school kids.
d. My son has been failing math at a young age. What I can do?
Failure is part of life experiences. Without experiencing failure, success is hard to come by. In this article (I), I offer an opportunity for parents to examine and evaluate the problems their children face. I will talk about ways to solve these problems in the next article.