Tritt Speaks Out in Defense of Arithmetic
Elementary school students should continue to develop strong mathematics skills despite computers’ superior ability to calculate, the Amagansett School District’s superintendent told the school board on Tuesday.
Eleanor Tritt referred to an interview in District Administration magazine in which Marc Prensky, the author of “Education to Better Their World: Unleashing the Power of 21st-Century Kids,” suggested discarding an approach to education that “we just impose on people for historical reasons.”
Using arithmetic as an example, Mr. Prensky said, “Yes, kids should be able to do some kinds of arithmetic. Not much above that is really needed except conceptually. We devote most of our learning to calculation — which is something computers do very well and humans don’t — but we spend very little time helping people understand where something in the world is actually mathematical.”
Mr. Prensky is an authority on technology, Ms. Tritt said, but “he’s recommending that we spend less time on mathematics skills because computers can compute more effectively than humans. I disagree with that. I strongly believe that students should have very strong mathematics and arithmetic skills in order to be able to manage and evaluate and develop the critical thinking that they need to have . . . and in addition develop concepts, but certainly not to allow computers to take over skill-building in children. We will continue to focus on the skills.”
Hank Muchnic, a school board member, agreed. “He really wants to organize things around what students have a passion for, what they’re interested in, which is fantastic,” he said, “but how do you then teach the skill of reading a book that you’re not interested in? That’s a concentration, a discipline that is warranted.”
And, Ms. Tritt said, students “may become interested in something that they had not before. They are exposed to more things. . . . That’s why we continue to focus on a very well-rounded education for our children, and then let them go off in different areas in the future.”
Also at the meeting, the board formally accepted a donation from the East Hampton Library of a complete, six-volume set of the East Hampton Historical Collection Series, as well as a DVD called “East Hampton: From the Ice Age to the Year 1998 A.D.,” which is the official video commemorating the town’s 350th anniversary.
Students will attend the Mad Heart Ball at the East Hampton Middle School on Feb. 10. The board authorized a $500 payment to East End Entertainment Corp. for D.J. services to be provided at the event.