Recent news from the Seattle Times on Bellevue School District’s math textbook adoption plans:
A Bellevue School District math-textbook committee has recommended that the district adopt Holt Mathematics, a more traditional textbook series than the district currently uses, for middle- and high-school algebra and geometry classes starting in the fall.
To ‘Where’s the Math‘ campaigners this is good news.
Where’s the Math have lobbied effectively for a shift in the Bellevue School district in particular (and all Washington in general) away from so-called ‘reform’ math resources towards so-called ‘traditional’ math.
The UK-based ‘God of Whizz’ recently wrote about the so-called ‘math wars’, and it’s fair to say that our position is neutral – you can teach math well without worrying whether your approach is reform or traditional:
…the fundamentals should always be solid mathematical principles and a love and thrill in the subject. Teachers convey this in person, Maths-Whizz conveys this with animation and careful design.
Engagement and student enquiry don’t come at the expense of rigour, and a didactic approach doesn’t come at the expense of fun.
We’ve had great feedback on our Math-Whizz teaching methods and content from advocates for traditional and reform math, alike.
We’d like to think this makes Math-Whizz pretty cool, but then we would think that, wouldn’t we…