New Math

New Math was a brief, dramatic change in the way mathematics was taught in American grade schools, and to a lesser extent in European countries, during the 1960s. The name is commonly given to a set of teaching practices introduced in the U.S. shortly after the Sputnik crisis in order to boost science education and mathematical skill in the population so that the intellectual threat of Soviet engineers, reputedly highly skilled mathematicians, could be met.

The new mathematical pedagogy

New Math emphasized mathematical structure through abstract concepts like set theory and number bases other than 10. Beginning in the early 1960s the new educational doctrine was installed, not only in the USA, but all over the developed world.

Much of the publicity centered on the focus of this program on set theory (influenced ultimately by the Bourbaki group and their work), functions, and diagram drawings. It was stressed that these subjects should be introduced early. Some of this focus was seen as exaggerated, even dogmatic. For example, in some cases pupils were taught axiomatic set theory at an early age. The idea behind this was that if the axiomatic foundations of mathematics were introduced to children, they could easily cope with the theorems of the mathematical system later.

Other topics introduced in the New Math include modular arithmetic, algebraic inequalities, matrices, symbolic logic, Boolean algebra and abstract algebra. Most of these topics (except algebraic inequalities) have been greatly de-emphasized or eliminated since the 1960s.

Resistance to curriculum change

Parents and teachers who opposed the New Math in the U.S. complained that the new curriculum was too far outside of students' ordinary experience and was not worth taking time away from more traditional topics, such as arithmetic. The material also put new demands on teachers, many of whom were required to teach material they did not fully understand. Parents were concerned that they did not understand what their children were learning and could not help them with their studies; many claimed to have been driven up the wall by this New Math craze. In the end it was concluded that the experiment was not working, and New Math fell out of favor before the end of the decade, though it continued to be taught for years thereafter in some school districts.

In the Algebra preface of his book "Precalculus Mathematics in a Nutshell," Professor George F. Simmons wrote that the New Math produced students who had "heard of the commutative law, but did not know the multiplication table."

In 1973, Morris Kline published his critical book Why Johnny Can't Add: the Failure of the New Math. It explains the desire to be relevant with mathematics representing something more modern than traditional topics. He says certain advocates of the new topics "ignored completely the fact that mathematics is a cumulative development and that it is practically impossible to learn the newer creations if one does not know the older ones" (p. 17). Furthermore, noting the trend to abstraction in New Math, Kline says "abstraction is not the first stage but the last stage in a mathematical development" (p. 98).

Across other countries

In the broader context, reform of school mathematics curricula was also pursued in European countries such as the United Kingdom (particularly by the School Mathematics Project), and France, where the extremely high prestige of mathematical qualifications was not matched by teaching that connected with contemporary research and university topics. In West Germany the changes were seen as part of a larger process of Bildungsreform. Beyond the use of set theory and different approach to arithmetic, characteristic changes were transformation geometry in place of the traditional deductive Euclidean geometry, and an approach to calculus that was based on greater insight, rather than emphasis on facility.

Again the changes met with a mixed reception, but for different reasons. For example, the end-users of mathematics studies were at that time mostly in the physical sciences and engineering; and they expected manipulative skill in calculus, rather than more abstract ideas. Some compromises have since been required, given that discrete mathematics is the basic language of computing.

Teaching in the USSR did not experience such extreme upheavals, while being kept in tune both with the applications and academic trends.

Under A. N. Kolmogorov, the mathematics committee declared a reform of the curricula of grades 4-10, at the time when the school system consisted of 10 grades. The committee found the type of reform in progress in Western countries to be unacceptable; for example, no special topic for sets was accepted for inclusion in school textbooks. Transformation approaches were accepted in teaching geometry, but not to such sophisticated level presented in the textbook produced by Boltyansky and Yaglom.

Popular culture

Tom Lehrer wrote a satirical song named "New Math" which centered around the process of subtracting 173 from 342 in decimal and octal. The song is in the style of a lecture about the general concept of subtraction in arbitrary number systems, illustrated by two simple calculations, and highlights the emphasis on insight and abstract concepts of the New Math approach. Lehrer's explanation of the two calculations is entirely correct, but presented in such a way (at rapid speed, with minimal visual aids, and with snide remarks thrown in) as to make it difficult for most audience members to follow the rather simple calculations being performed. This is intended to poke fun at the kind of bafflement the New Math approach often evoked when apparently simple calculations were presented in a very general manner which, while mathematically correct and arguably trivial for mathematicians, was likely very confusing to absolute beginners and even contemporary adult audiences. Summing up his opinion of New Math is the final sentence from his introductory remarks to the song: "...in the new approach, as you know, the important thing is to understand what you're doing, rather than to get the right answer."

Excerpt:

So you've got thirteen 10s and you take away seven

And that leaves five ... well, six, actually.

But the idea is the important thing.

Chorus:

Hooray for new math,

New-hoo-hoo-math,

It won't do you a bit of good to review math.

It's so simple,

So very simple,

That only a child can do it!

New Math was also the name of a '70s punk rock band from Rochester, NY.

New Math was a confounding concept to Cliff Huxtable on The Cosby Show episode 85 "Dance Mania".

The episode "Dog of Death" of The Simpsons makes an indirect reference to the New Math, when Principal Skinner describes the new textbooks he'd like to use: "History books that know how the Korean War came out… math books that don't have that base six crap in them…"

A federal jury awarded a photographer $0.20 after Bill Cosby allegedly assaulted him. In an interview later Cosby said: "Ten percent is my fault and ninety percent is their fault, and they win? What is that ...the New Math?"

New Math was referenced several times during the 1960s in the comic strip Peanuts, as the characters Sally Brown and Linus van Pelt were often depicted struggling with it (although Linus eventually became proficient enough to tutor Sally in the subject).

Status

New Math was abandoned and discredited by the late 1960s: The new math was too complex for most students to grasp. The movement failed, but not before it created a generation of adults who hate mathematics.

See also

• Comprehensive School Mathematics Program (CSMP)
• André Lichnerowicz - Created 1967 French Lichnerowicz Commission

Further reading

• Adler, Irving. The New Mathematics. New York: John Day and Co, 1972 (revised edition). ISBN 0-381-98002-2
• Maurice Mashaal (2006), Bourbaki: A Secret Society of Mathematicians, American Mathematical Society, ISBN 0-8218-3967-5, Chapter 10: New Math in the Classroom, pp 134–45.

External links

• Tom Lehrer Deposit #10 Authorized website that plays Lehrer's entire song and encourages you to download the track or buy the CD.
• A history of the New Math, including the UICSM and SMSG projects