Every math teacher has to be prepared for the inevitable. There will always be, without fail, at at least one point during any given class (and usually more than one) a student who asks, "When am I ever going to need this?" And what every math teacher realizes is that to the student this is a rhetorical question. They don't expect you to be able to answer it. But you try to all the same.
In a math teacher's pleasant daydreams, a student would ask the dreaded question, and then a second student might respond passionately to the first student's question before the teacher could say a word. "Look," he would say, "we probably won't use, like, 90% of what we learn in here, but it's the thought process that's so valuable. This class is teaching you a way of thinking, and that's really important." And several students would nod in agreement, and a third student would pipe up, "Yeah, that's true! Plus, it keeps your mind sharp. Lots of people do math problems just to keep their minds sharp. I think there are even studies about that." And then the student who had originally asked the question would nod thoughtfully and say, "Oh okay, I can buy that." And the whole class would turn their attention back to the teacher, ready and willing to learn the mathematics that they will probably never use in their future careers. And the teacher would have done nothing except stand by in bemusement as the students resolved the inevitable and eternal crisis for her.
And that's exactly how things played out in my classroom on Wednesday this week. It completely made my day.
6 comments:
That's awesome.
That is pretty impressive.
My subject of interest is even worse when that question is asked. Since I'm doing strictly music theory, even the music majors are asking that question.
That IS awesome!
Very impressive! I totally did not expect that ending!:-)
Your blog is like reading a good book. Hope you save these and publish something like what ever would make a good title.
Woohoo for awesome classroom happenings. :)
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