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Greg, Londonderry schools are not using IB.
However, the ENTIRE STATE of NH uses Outcome Based Education, which is very weak academically, emphasizing the "higher level thinking": attitudes and values. It is competency training toward the creation of human capital. This is progressive fad education which has failed in previous attempts in the US but has been put in place by the NH Bd. of Ed, and specifically Fred Bramante, who graduated at the bottom of his class, was fired from his teaching job, and promotes an education geared toward non-traditional learners for EVERYONE in the state. Our schools share the same philosophies and methodologies of IB, and admin of non-IB schools consult with those of IB schools.
is it possible that rather than focusing on having students memorize things, they focus more on the method - basically trying to teach the kids to reason and think things out instead?
For example: when I took math, I had a terrible time! I have a numerical form of dyslexia and the numbers play tricks on me (they shift places, they change numbers and I've actually watched as my brain thinks one number and my hand is writing another!). I would take tests, double & triple check my answers and hand it in. Then the test comes back with a lot wrong - and I would be baffled usually because of stupid simple math mistakes and I know I checked them. some of those numbers were not the ones I saw!! but no one believed me. In 8th grade, we would take weekly tests, I'd fail (or nearly so) and ask to take it again - after we went over it in class and I had an opportunity to memorize what the answer was supposed to be.. son of a gun, the re-test would go a lot better. I'm sure she knew what I was doing, but I new the process, I just got numbers wrong. she wanted to see how I got my answer, and it was basically sound. So I should have failed the class because I have trouble with numbers?? I don't see a problem.
Wanna, people with learning disabilities like yourself should receive direct instruction in math, and you are correct - you should have been taught to understand concepts before any memorization. How would memorized facts have made any sense to you without an understanding of concepts?
As it is currently in NH, 'constructivist' math is pervasive. Constructivist math means students teach each other in small groups while the teacher does not instruct directly but merely facilitates. Some schools offer direct instruction to the learning disabled who have IEPs and in those schools many parents request $IEPs$ for their children not because they have any disability but specifically so they will receive traditional direct math instruction!
For the most part the very confusing reform math abounds. Believe it or not, the reform math of some SAUs is so confusing they offer parent math workshops to train parents in how they teach math in 'new' ways and many parents taught traditional math with direct instruction yrs ago walk away confused. How are their children supposed to figure it out to the point that they can do advanced math with success? Sufficient direct math instruction is hard to come by in the entire region, and too many parents trust educators who say "research shows children at this age can not understand these concepts" when most could if only they were taught correctly. Sure there are people like you who have a legitimate disability, but not as many as are being presently hindered in math.
Check out the math class in this video. Interdependent, minimal instruction, calculators:
I remember when my son was being taught in school how to subtract large numbers, where you have to "borrow" from the next group. He had a hard time understanding it. They weren't teaching them the way I was taught almost 30 years ago and I could not grasp what they were doing when he tried to explain it to me. I felt like such an idiot! I couldn't help him.....I showed my son the way I was taught and he understood it much better than the way he was being taught in the classroom! Maybe there's a reason they are being taught differently??
Each of my kids learned math concepts differently from each other. It seems that every 5-8 years, the school systems go with different teaching methods, and I'm sure this is true not only in math, but in other classes as well. The 2 oldest excelled in math, always found it 'easy', and for each of them, high school physics class was one of their favorites. The youngest learned even the most basic math in ways that I had never seen before (using visuals, groupings blocks, etc. instead of memorizing facts). I couldn't make head or tails out of it (old dogs, new tricks, etc...) Now that he's in HS, he's sure wishing that he knew those math facts (instead he learned memorization 'tricks' which IMO isn't nearly as useful as KNOWING the facts as easily as one can recite the ABC's.
Each of my kids learned math concepts differently from each other. It seems that every 5-8 years, the school systems go with different teaching methods, and I'm sure this is true not only in math, but in other classes as well.
Very true in other classes- remember Phonics? In style one year- out of style the next. Growing up my parent's made up the difference between things I understood at school and things that took a different explanation; I get the feeling that this happens a lot less today between kids and their parents.
phonics isn't out. Dick & Jane was phonics! that was a pretty long time. not sure what they use now, but probably similar.
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I couldn't help him.....I showed my son the way I was taught and he understood it much better than the way he was being taught in the classroom! Maybe there's a reason they are being taught differently??
