PARENTS need to encourage their children to appreciate math and the sciences to prepare them for a competitive world. These two subjects are the cornerstones of progress and development in the current and future environment, an executive of a children’s learning institution said.
“Parents must be proactive in addressing if they think their children have a learning gap in math and science before it’s too late,” said Galileo Enrichment Learning Program Chief Executive Officer Rowena Juan Matti in a recent interview with the BusinessMirror.
“Instead of the traditional method of tutoring, parents should enroll their children at a young age in any established learning enrichment center around the country. It would be an advantage for the children if they will start young in learning the rudiments of math and science. This move will eliminate if not minimize their aversion to numbers and scientific concepts,” she said.
At the moment, Matti said Galileo is promoting Singapore Math, a method developed by Singaporean educators to enable children to enjoy learning math.
According to Matti, Singapore Math simplifies the teaching of math to children by translating math concepts into models so they can visualize the operations. For instance, numbers are represented by boxes and brackets, and the positions of these boxes determine which operation to use.
“This method eliminates the memorizing of dozens of formulas and it breaks each problem down to its simplest form and use the basic operations to solve it,” said Matti.
Before the 1980s, Singapore used imported math textbooks. In 1980 the Singaporean government implemented a new approach in mathematics instruction by developing local materials. Led by the Curriculum Development Institute of Singapore (CDIS), the city-state produced primary and secondary textbooks. Its Ministry of Education, the centralized education authority in the country, crafted new objectives for math education, emphasizing a focus on problem solving and heuristic-model drawing.
The CDIS led in integrating these goals into the textbooks. In 1982 the government unveiled the first Singapore math program, and Primary Mathematics 1-6 was published. In 1992 a second edition was made available. The second edition revisions included an even stronger focus on problem solving and using model drawing as a strategy to problem solving.
The Singapore math program yielded positive results. Singapore students showed their math proficiency on international assessments. In 1984 Singapore’s students were placed 16th out of 26 nations in the Second International Science Study. By 1995 the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study ranked Singapore’s students first among participants.
Recognizing the impact of Singapore Math, Matti said Galileo has included Singapore Math in its math program and offers it all-year round in various Galileo centers.
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