conrad@wucs1.wustl.edu (H. Conrad Cunningham) (05/03/91)
In article <1991May2.133856.8338@psych.toronto.edu> grant@psych.toronto.edu (Stuart Grant) writes: >So, I think math instruction can be best improved not by teaching the >teachers more math, but by giving them more teaching skills, including >additinal training in how to teach math. I'm not sure that prospective math teachers need more "teaching methods" courses, but I believe they surely need more explicit training in "mathematical problem solving methods." I think part of the problem with the way math is taught at pre-college levels is the way it is taught at the college level. Many academic mathematicians (wild generalization here!) seem to have little interest in "problem solving methodology" and even less in trying explicitly to teach such methodologies. Math teachers at the elementary and secondary levels could benefit greatly from explicit teaching in such techniques. I would consider study of the works of Polya, for example, to be essential for high school math teachers. Some of the results coming from the computer program derivation community may also provide new insights into mathematical methodology.