[Blindmath] Blindmath Digest, Vol 69, Issue 13
Michael Whapples
mwhapples at aim.com
Sat Apr 21 17:49:39 UTC 2012
Learning to do the basics without a calculator is really important for
anyone, it can be useful much later on in life. As an example my physics
degree had a section where they emphasised the need to be able to
estimate what sort of size answer you should get, so that when you have
done a lengthy calculation (probably with a calculator) you would be
able to spot if something seems to have gone wrong.
Pure faith in the calculator is not a good thing, you could easily have
entered something wrongly by mistake.
Michael Whapples
On 21/04/2012 04:02, Maylene Bird wrote:
> I teach high school math in a school for the blind and I see the results of
> students allowed to use calculators for math at a very young age-- they
> can't do anything simple without the calculator and this slows them down to
> a point that they can't do the math at an adequate speed and are never very
> good at math. They also do not understand the more fundamental parts of
> how math works- finding common denominators, calculating simple problems
> combining positive and negative numbers, etc. At the algebra level we
> expect them to be able to do those simple things quickly and easily. If
> they can't, they frequently do not end up passing the class.
>
> Students in elementary math need to learn how to do the math by hand.
> There is a great tool to show a braille user fairly quickly how
> calculations are laid out visually and helps them to understand things like
> numerator and denominator, finding common denominators, etc. It's the
> product called Math Window. Hands-on manipulatives to show equal fractions
> are great too for getting the concept across, but at some point it is good
> for them to write it down using a braille writer (or the like) so that they
> can look at it immediately.
>
> Dr. Nemeth told me that he learned his math with sighted children when he
> went to school and that he values learning how it works visually because he
> could always understand what the teacher was teaching the other sighted
> kids, and he was not left behind. We as teachers just have to be ready to
> show a multitude of ways to understand the math. But in my opinion, the
> basic math skills are ciritical to getting to the next level and a
> calculator should not be handed to an elementary aged kid.
>
> Sincerely,
> Maylene Bird
>
> On Thu, Apr 19, 2012 at 12:00 PM,<blindmath-request at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
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>> Today's Topics:
>>
>> 1. Teaching calculation algorithms to blind students (Li Zhou)
>> 2. Re: Teaching calculation algorithms to blind students
>> (bente at casilenc.com)
>> 3. Re: Teaching calculation algorithms to blind students
>> (Susan Mooney)
>>
>>
>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 1
>> Date: Thu, 19 Apr 2012 08:52:52 -0500
>> From: Li Zhou<lzhou.backup at gmail.com>
>> To: blindmath at nfbnet.org
>> Subject: [Blindmath] Teaching calculation algorithms to blind students
>> Message-ID:
>> <CAJX++jgka0-okDhSma0_m5=7=uLncQK+3=tAZ9pEOhdQQgEHcw at mail.gmail.com
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
>>
>> Hi all,
>>
>> I want to know more about how elementary general education math
>> teachers teach the standard algorithms (the vertical procedures used
>> by sighted students to do addition, subtraction, ..) to students with
>> complete blindness in inclusive classrooms. Since many general ed.
>> teachers do not use the abacus or braillewriter, how can they give
>> blind students direct instruction on calculation algorithms?
>>
>> Or, the calculation algorithms are left for itinerant TVIs. General
>> ed. math teachers only use some manipulatives to help students (both
>> sighted and blind) to understand calculation, probably from 1st to 3th
>> grade. When it comes to use pencil and paper and standard algorithms
>> to carry out calculations (more complex problems, probably for 4th or
>> 5th grade students), they do not directly teach blind students. Is
>> this true?
>>
>> I was even told that carrying out more complex calculation manually
>> using standard algorithms is not important any more. As long as
>> students understand calculation (probably using manipulatives), they
>> can use calculators. So, even for sighted students, they do not need
>> to do a lot of calculations using pencil and paper. Is this true?
>>
>> Thanks a lot.
>>
>> lz
>>
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 2
>> Date: Thu, 19 Apr 2012 10:17:34 -0400
>> From: bente at casilenc.com
>> To: "Blind Math list for those interested in mathematics"
>> <blindmath at nfbnet.org>
>> Subject: Re: [Blindmath] Teaching calculation algorithms to blind
>> students
>> Message-ID:
>> <f31cb547f12296a75524d45648cfa67f.squirrel at emailmg.globat.com>
>> Content-Type: text/plain;charset=iso-8859-1
>>
>> Li,
>>
>> I am a math learning specialist at a community college and here is my
>> opinion. I would not recommend allowing any student to rely on only a
>> calculator. Eventually as children progress through our elementary,
>> middle, high school, and college the mathematics becomes more complex.
>> Students need to solve multi step problems. They must have a way of
>> keeping track of their progress toward a solution. For sighted
>> students that is paper and pencil (using the calculator to do the
>> computation). For blind students that is either Nemeth Braille code or
>> technology. Some students use computers with math software that can be
>> read back using JAWS, a screen reader. Calculators are good for
>> computation, but they should be a tool that is used as necessary, not
>> something to replace everything else.
>>
>> Bente J. Casile
>> Math Learning Specialist
>> Disability Support Services
>> Wake Technical Community College
>> Raleigh, NC
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Hi all,
>>> I want to know more about how elementary general education math
>>> teachers teach the standard algorithms (the vertical procedures used
>>> by sighted students to do addition, subtraction, ..) to students with
>>> complete blindness in inclusive classrooms. Since many general ed.
>>> teachers do not use the abacus or braillewriter, how can they give
>>> blind students direct instruction on calculation algorithms?
>>>
>>> Or, the calculation algorithms are left for itinerant TVIs. General
>>> ed. math teachers only use some manipulatives to help students (both
>>> sighted and blind) to understand calculation, probably from 1st to 3th
>>> grade. When it comes to use pencil and paper and standard algorithms
>>> to carry out calculations (more complex problems, probably for 4th or
>>> 5th grade students), they do not directly teach blind students. Is
>>> this true?
>>>
>>> I was even told that carrying out more complex calculation manually
>>> using standard algorithms is not important any more. As long as
>>> students understand calculation (probably using manipulatives), they
>>> can use calculators. So, even for sighted students, they do not need
>>> to do a lot of calculations using pencil and paper. Is this true?
>>>
>>> Thanks a lot.
>>>
>>> lz
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Blindmath mailing list
>>> Blindmath at nfbnet.org
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindmath_nfbnet.org
>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>>> Blindmath:
>>>
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindmath_nfbnet.org/bente%40casilenc.com
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 3
>> Date: Thu, 19 Apr 2012 10:36:28 -0400
>> From: Susan Mooney<susanannemooney at gmail.com>
>> To: Blind Math list for those interested in mathematics
>> <blindmath at nfbnet.org>
>> Subject: Re: [Blindmath] Teaching calculation algorithms to blind
>> students
>> Message-ID:
>> <CAOh4ie9eecyCw9Oku5-iZ-FXrzMTUrD14ND9B0js8J45ZLa5GQ at mail.gmail.com
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
>>
>> Thank you, Bente Casile!!!!!
>>
>> SM
>>
>> On Thu, Apr 19, 2012 at 10:17 AM,<bente at casilenc.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Li,
>>>
>>> I am a math learning specialist at a community college and here is my
>>> opinion. I would not recommend allowing any student to rely on only a
>>> calculator. Eventually as children progress through our elementary,
>>> middle, high school, and college the mathematics becomes more complex.
>>> Students need to solve multi step problems. They must have a way of
>>> keeping track of their progress toward a solution. For sighted
>>> students that is paper and pencil (using the calculator to do the
>>> computation). For blind students that is either Nemeth Braille code or
>>> technology. Some students use computers with math software that can be
>>> read back using JAWS, a screen reader. Calculators are good for
>>> computation, but they should be a tool that is used as necessary, not
>>> something to replace everything else.
>>>
>>> Bente J. Casile
>>> Math Learning Specialist
>>> Disability Support Services
>>> Wake Technical Community College
>>> Raleigh, NC
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Hi all,
>>>> I want to know more about how elementary general education math
>>>> teachers teach the standard algorithms (the vertical procedures used
>>>> by sighted students to do addition, subtraction, ..) to students with
>>>> complete blindness in inclusive classrooms. Since many general ed.
>>>> teachers do not use the abacus or braillewriter, how can they give
>>>> blind students direct instruction on calculation algorithms?
>>>>
>>>> Or, the calculation algorithms are left for itinerant TVIs. General
>>>> ed. math teachers only use some manipulatives to help students (both
>>>> sighted and blind) to understand calculation, probably from 1st to 3th
>>>> grade. When it comes to use pencil and paper and standard algorithms
>>>> to carry out calculations (more complex problems, probably for 4th or
>>>> 5th grade students), they do not directly teach blind students. Is
>>>> this true?
>>>>
>>>> I was even told that carrying out more complex calculation manually
>>>> using standard algorithms is not important any more. As long as
>>>> students understand calculation (probably using manipulatives), they
>>>> can use calculators. So, even for sighted students, they do not need
>>>> to do a lot of calculations using pencil and paper. Is this true?
>>>>
>>>> Thanks a lot.
>>>>
>>>> lz
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> Blindmath mailing list
>>>> Blindmath at nfbnet.org
>>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindmath_nfbnet.org
>>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>>>> Blindmath:
>>>>
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindmath_nfbnet.org/bente%40casilenc.com
>>>
>>>
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>>
>>
>> --
>> Be Here now. Be someplace else later. Is that so complicated? (Zen
>> Judaism)
>> <http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/875661.Rumi>
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>>
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>> Blindmath mailing list
>> Blindmath at nfbnet.org
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>>
>> End of Blindmath Digest, Vol 69, Issue 13
>> *****************************************
>>
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