In the book The Process of Education, Bruner (1966) stated that "our schools may be wasting precious years by postponing the teaching of many important subjects on the ground that they are too difficult" (p. 12). In mathematics education, we can find East Asian countries complete fractions operations in grade 6 while Canadian and some other Western countries complete fractions operations in grade 8. Do we postpone the teaching of important content in mathematics education? Do we need acceleration the topic progress in math curriculum?
Article Curriculum Matters: What We Teach and What Students Gain
Article: A Coherent Curriculum: https://www.math.mun.ca/~hsgaskill/refs/curriculum.pdf
My opinion is no. What must be done is to teach mathematics using rational methods to explain the students the basic theory and the reasons behind each methods and techniques used to explain mathematics. We must stop teaching mathematics by forcing the students to memorize the theory and then to carry out several exercises to explain the theory teached in a practical manner.
It is important to stress that teachers need to be able to understand the theory, theorems, concepts and definitions correctly and they also must be able to understand the conceptual foundation of the mathematical theory. Teachers must also understand mathematics in ways that allow them to explain correctly the main concepts and principles that in adult life the students could be needed.
By remembering, as a student, I received an excellent teaching in Mathematics. The teachers had to make an effort to cover all aspects of interest in this area. However, over time the state assumed the educational plan used in northern countries, and as a result there was a significant delay, to such an extent that the rate of repetition of Mathematics increased.
The following effect could also be felt in old school students: the work of a master's degree student was considered a doctoral thesis in those countries.
The issue under discussion is very important and has several edges that must be addressed.
Greetings from Venezuela.
Thank you @ Jorge Morales Pedraza reply. By my understanding, you mean that students should learn math indepth, and teachers should use proper pedagogical reasoning to interpret math knowledge.
Currently, the curricula in East Asian countries such as Singapore and China require students to complete fraction operations in grade 6 while in Canada and the US require students complete fraction operations in grade 8. At the end of grade 12, students will complete almost similar math content to prepare post secondary study. The slow topic progression in grades 1-8 and fast topic progression in grades 9-12 may have some negative effects for learning.
Thank you @ Jorge Eliecer Hernandez Hernandez. I agree with you view. I searched a few versions official math curricula of Ontario Canada, which are since 1960s. I feel that the former versions of curricula are rigor and cover more aspects.
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