Hawke wrote:
"Lew Hartswick" wrote in message
m...

Hawke wrote:

Yep, you're right, You just like to argue.
Hawke

:-) Partly that and I don't have a job or even my volunteer
position now that school is out. (retired 10 yrs ago)
I'm not talking about what you are calling "higher math"
necessarily, but having been in close contact with several
hundred high school students over the last 6 or 7 years
that cant do arithmetic let alone algebra or trig I can
tell you exactly the competance of your typical high school
student. :-(
When I went to school we had Algebra I, Algebra II,
Plane Geometry, Solid Geometry, and Trigonometry.
Calculus, diferential and integral I didn't get till college.
That served me very well and a lot of other folks I know.
...lew...



Here's the problem. You guys that can do and understand math remind me of
the basketball players that say I don't see what's so hard about dunking a
basketball and why can't you do it. All my friends can. Most people just
can't understand math. The people who do understand it think it's easy and
can't see why others don't get it. Just like the basketball player. To me
math is like when you go to the eye doctor and they show you the color
blindness charts where it's a circle filled with colored dots and there is a
number in the middle, which you can see if you're not colorblind. But if
you're color blind you can't see anything. That's math. If you get it you
can see the number in the circle if you can't you see nothing. Most people
could never complete a class in trig, calculus, or what comes after. It
takes a certain type of brain to understand that stuff. Those of you who get
it are lucky. Most of us are not. Even so, I still think there are other
classes that would be more helpful for most students than mathematics. Aside
from Goodwill Hunting, I've never seen a janitor or anyone working
construction, or on an oil rig, or selling cars, or cage fighting, or so
many other jobs doing equations. Like you said, most people can't even do
simple arithmetic, but I can understand why.

Hawke

OK Hawke, I see your point. I guess My BIG complaint should be with
the "mainlining", or what ever they call it, trying to push every
kid through the same curriculum and the whole concept of "No Child
Left Behind". I can relate to your argument with History and language,
I flunked History 21 and German 1 in college the first time through.
Math and sciences were a breeze. (struggled like hell with english
comp) :-)
I guess different brains work different.
...lew...