On 2010/02/02, at 06:18 , Martin Vlietstra wrote:
One of the important roles played by the centimetre is in elementary
education. Young children can use centimetre blocks to learns
counting and measuring at the same time (the Montesouri method).
Getting them to unlearn centimetres is a retrograde step – it is far
better to introduce millimetres once they are ready for it and to
teach them that some industries use millimetres and some centimetres
(and that you should not mix them).
Dear Martin,
You make some interesting points.
As I understand it, Madame Maria Montessori developed a method for
teaching mathematics that involved blocks to make the concepts
concrete for children. For example, if you make a rectangle 3 blocks
wide and 4 blocks long, how many blocks will you need? Note that
Montessori's blocks were in a sense 'pure mathematics' in that the
size of the blocks didn't matter as the mathematical principle
remained the same. Using Montessori's method there is no need to
unlearn anything since she was applying general mathematical
principles not teaching about a particular single metric unit.
The reduction from pure mathematics to centimetre-only based
mathematics was made by Georges Cuisenaire in 1952. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuisenaire_rods
Coupling pure mathematical concepts to a single unit is, in my
opinion, not a useful approach. I have nothing against the use of
cuisenaire rods as a tool for teaching pure mathematics; it is the
coupling of these concepts to the metrology of the metric system that
I object to as it makes the teaching of both concepts more difficult.
Similarly, I am uncomfortable about using the metric system to teach
concepts of multiplication and division processes by sliding decimal
points back and forth. Decimalisation is not metrication and coupling
the two ideas does, I think, harm to both of them.
At about, or a bit above, middle primary (elementary) school in
Australia, children already make a natural transition from printed
writing in block letters to 'joined-up writing' using cursive script.
I see nothing wrong with children at the same stage of their schooling
making a natural transition from (junior) centimetres cuisenaire
blocks to (more senior) use of millimetres.
Cheers,
Pat Naughtin
Author of the ebook, Metrication Leaders Guide, that you can obtain
from http://metricationmatters.com/MetricationLeadersGuideInfo.html
PO Box 305 Belmont 3216,
Geelong, Australia
Phone: 61 3 5241 2008
Metric system consultant, writer, and speaker, Pat Naughtin, has
helped thousands of people and hundreds of companies upgrade to the
modern metric system smoothly, quickly, and so economically that they
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