Mathematical discourse: going beyond right answers

M, Prachi (2024) Mathematical discourse: going beyond right answers. At Right Angles. pp. 15-20. ISSN 2582-1873

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Abstract

It was a winter day, and all the students gathered on the ground for assembly. The air was filled with the melodious notes of the national anthem and other uplifting tunes, setting the stage for a day of learning. As the last strains of music faded away, the teacher asked, “Who will tell me the table of 14?” Some students raised their hands while some started hiding behind others. “Let’s start from Class 3, Aryan you tell me, what is 14 times 7?” Aryan seemed nervous and though he tried, could not recall what 14 × 7 was. After the assembly, the teacher proudly told me how some of their students could recite the tables till 30. Later, in a fourthgrade class, a student flawlessly solved double digit multiplication but confessed to simply following instructions when asked why he wrote a ‘0’ while multiplying by the second digit. These two anecdotes highlighted for me, how school mathematics often focuses on memorization and question-answer conversations, stifling the joy and creativity inherent in exploring numbers.

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Articles in APF Magazines

Authors:

M, Prachi

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