On 29-5-2011 13:12, Rudy Velthuis wrote:
> andrel wrote:
>
>> On 28-5-2011 14:36, Orchid XP v8 wrote:
>>>>>> If you don't know them by heart a large part of our culture is
>>>>>> inaccessible to you.
>>>>>
>>>>> Such as?
>>>>
>>>> basically most of the mathematical knowledge.
>>>
>>> I don't see why you need to memorise multiplication tables to
>>> understand mathematics.
>>
>> You can not understand long division or long multiplication without
>> those tables.
>
> One note: I think people should know them by heart and also be able to
> do simple calculations in their head, simply because it is not very
> pragmatic not to know them. You can't and shouldn't, IMO, always revert
> to a calculator for that. It keeps you fit, up there.
>
> But knowing these tables by heart does not help in *understanding*
> anything. The knowledge only helps in applying that understanding a
> little more pragmatically.
>
> I can understand long division and multiplication, prime numbers and
> number theory principles very well without knowing the multiplication
> tables by heart.

You can in theory, but I am pretty sure you won't in practice. Or at 
least the vast majority of people won't. At the age you are normally 
learning it you need practical examples. Only much later on when you 
have mastered abstract thinking you can understand the process without 
being able to perform the process yourself.
That leaves open the question how much mastering abstract thinking is 
hampered by not learning long division at the appropriate age. Then 
again, I don't know what kind of games kids play nowadays, so abstract 
reasoning and the concept of algorithms may come in a totally different 
way than in my time. (Though my time as a teacher does not suggest that 
other way was very effective).


-- 
Apparently you can afford your own dictator for less than 10 cents per 
citizen per day.

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