Educators call for innovative teaching approach for maths

Replacing an abstract approach with logic and reasoning are solutions two educators have given as their remedy to a persistent math phobia that exists among many students.

In sharing some advice in light of the ongoing examination period, Nadine Molloy, principal of Ardenne High School in St Andrew, said the need to take a practical approach to the subject area cannot be overemphasised.

"Some are scared, that's a given. However, some of the students don't recognise how much more effort they have to put into preparation for the subject. Math is logic and reasoning; it is not something you can prepare overnight for," she said.

"There are those students who are very brilliant when it comes to math, and they get it at the first go. But, generally, the work has to be done incrementally. It takes a lot of practice. It takes a lot of practical application," she continued.

She said her observation over the years has taught her that students simply want to be able to decipher how the subject applies to them in real life.

"I stopped by a grade eight class the other day, and a student actually asked me, 'Why we do math?' and I gave what I thought was a good answer. I went to another class, and I decided to test the answer that I gave, and the students were basically saying that once it (math) makes sense for them in their world and the world that they are going to be operating in, the challenges with grasping the subject will be minimised," she told The Gleaner.

Molloy was joined by Senator Damion Crawford, who is also an educator. He noted that teaching methods have to be improved in order to see satisfactory results.

"The first problem with math is that it is taught as a memory subject as opposed to a logic or reasoning subject," he declared, pointing to a myriad of math classes he has on YouTube.

"While history might be a memory subject, math is a subject of reasoning and should be taught that way. The other thing that people don't understand is that mathematics is a language. For example, the equal sign simply means 'the same as'. So, 'x equals five' means that x is the same as five," he explained.