A Stanford University professor has said schools need to liberate pupils from a “crippling” fear of getting things wrong
Times table tests should be banned in schools because children are being putt off maths from a very early age, a leading academic has said.
Jo Boaler, who teachers mathematics education at Stanford University, argues that it isn’t worth it to put children off the subject for the sake of getting the right answer “under pressure, without hesitation”.
Prof Boaler’s unorthodox views have met with critics who argue that children are anxious about being tested on times tables because they don’t know the answer and that learning them should be an “educational entitlement”.
According to the Times Educational Supplement (TES), Prof Boaler said “that in an ideal world she would ban times tables tests.
“It’s not that times tables aren’t worth learning, but the greater goal of maths education is more important, she argues.
“Therefore, perhaps we should seriously think about whether it is worth risking some children being turned off the subject, aged 8, for the sake of ensuring they can answer 7x6 under pressure, without hesitation.”
Read the entire article on the Telegraph website.
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