Fifty years of math..

[Bullfrog]

Years of Math 1959 - 2009 (in the USA )

Last week I purchased a burger at Burger King for $1.58. The counter girl took my $2 and I was digging for my change when I pulled 8 cents from my pocket and gave it to her. She stood there, holding the nickel and 3 pennies, while looking at the screen on her register. I sensed her discomfort and tried to tell her to just give me two quarters , but she hailed the manager for help. While he tried to explain the transaction to her, she stood there and cried. Why do I tell you this? Because of the evolution in teaching math since the 1950s:

1. Teaching Math In 1950s

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5 of the price. What is his profit ?

2. Teaching Math In 1960s

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5 of the price, or $80. What is his profit?

3. Teaching Math In 1970s

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is $80. Did he make a profit?

4. Teaching Math In 1980s

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is $80 and his profit is $20. Your assignment: Underline the number 20.

5. Teaching Math In 1990s

A logger cuts down a beautiful forest because he is selfish and inconsiderate and cares nothing for the habitat of animals or the preservation of our woodlands.. He does this so he can make a profit of $20. What do you think of this way of making a living? Topic for class participation after answering the question: How did the birds and squirrels feel as the logger cut down their homes? (There are no wrong answers, and if you feel like crying, it's ok. )

6. Teaching Math In 2009

Un hachero vende una carretada de maderapara $100. El costo de la producciones es $80. Cuanto dinero ha hecho?

[jw]

Bullfrog you crack me up        Too sad tho that it's the truth!  :'(

[cc]

I totally agree, its funny but sad. I bought couple of muffins the other day, got the exact amount out but the girl behind the counter was busy running fore and back to get the calculator and tax chart. I got tired of waiting so I just left the money on the counter.
Same goes for spellings and handwriting no thanks to computers.

[Esther]

Bullfrog, you are sooo naughty. That was funny. 

Um, some people just aren't good with numbers, calculator or no calculator, good education or not. I never had any math any higher than basic math, no algebra, geometry, trig, calculus or whatever. I love math and easily do it in my head. But I think sometimes kids are so used to having been taught YOU DO IT LIKE THIS, they didn't understand what they were being taught to do. It's like me and the computer, I know what buttons to push but have no understanding of how it works. I remember being taught fractions and decimals. I knew I didn't understand what they were saying so memorized how to do it. Eventually it dawned on me why 1/3 was smaller than 1/2 even though the 3 was larger than the 2. LOL.

I have a Facebook account and on Facebook is a virtual Farm game thing. After you plant the crops, as time goes along, when you place the cursor over that crop, it'll say "crop 55% grown" or something like that. When people want to know how long it takes for the crop to be ready, they have to know that the Farm Town day is only 20 hours long, not 24 so that complicates things a bit. But I'm surprised at how many people I've run into who have no idea how to figure out when the crop will be ripe and ready to harvest. For a while there I wrote it up and copied and pasted it to all my neighbors so they wouldn't be having their crops go to waste. (LOL first I typed waiste, speaking of spelling.)

My Dh received very good marks in math and took algebra too but now, 45 years later barely can do simple math and is very intimidated with calculations of any sort.

[Julles]

When I was a kid, before computers, checkers in grocery stores had to do math... like, if tomatoes were 6/$1.59, and you bought 10 of them, they had to figure - quickly - how much to charge you.

What bugs me most in stores is when they give you your change, but they place the receipt in your hand first, and put the coins on top.  The coins can't help but slide all over the place.  If the idiots would put the coins in your palm first, you could easily close on them and grasp them and there would be no spills.   

[Bullfrog]

When I was single I was dating a girl that liked classical music so I went to Best Buy to get some. I walked over to the CD's and a girl (blonde, no kidding) asked me..

"Can I help you?"

"Yes, I'm looking for some Mozart."

Right over here, she led me to the right location and snatched a CD off of the shelf, she studied the label and then said, no kidding, she really said...

"I think this is like his greatest hits."

"Really? I asked..

"But I don't think it's really him playing, I think its like other people doing his stuff."   

[Kittyzee]

   Yeah, hopefully it was someone else playing....jeez.

[Bullfrog]

I should have insisted that I wanted one with him really playing not "other people doing his stuff" and watched just how long she would have dug through them before calling for a managers help.

His greatest hits.. "Mozart Rocks the Fillmore."

[Esther]

Again, her strong point was not classical music. If she had never been exposed to Mozart, of course she would have no idea when he lived.