Mechanic: Sir, your wheels need to be adjusted. the reading on your car say your wheel are out of spec. It's point fifteen (0.15). That's really bad. I'm surprised you can drive at all. (He hands me the printout on a sheet of paper.)
I look at the sheet of paper and notice the acceptable range to be point one (0.1) to point two (0.2).
Me: Wait a minute! How is zero point one five greater than point two?
Mechanic: It's fifteen sir, that's obviously greater than two.
Me: No, It's not! It's right in the middle. (I check the other ranges, and they are fine.)
Mechanic: I can get this done to point one.
Right then I have images flash through my mind of him realigning my tires over and over again. The Machine taking hours, because reading of 0.11, 0.14, and 0.19 are all greater than 0.2.
Me: That's fine just give me my car.
Bottom Line
Math is for everyone. Period. Math should be taught in every grade K-12. K-3 should be drilling with math facts, number, set theory, additions tables, subtraction table, multiplication table, and division table. Remember those 100 question speed quizzes? One hundred math question in 10 minutes. 1+3 =? 9+7=? 10/2 =?, 4*8 =? Drill. Drill. Drill. Yeah, it was a pain, but it increases computation speed and helps with all the higher math as well. 256 *16 = ? Yeah, there are these things call calculators and computer, but if you don't know the basic how do you even know your calculator is giving the right answer? Drilling and flash cards really work.
Obviously, this will not help our friend the mechanic. He should have learned decimal and factions in the 4th or 5th grade. I sure he was one of those kids who said, "Why do I need to know this?" (Because you are going to mess up someone car and they will die in a horrible car accident!)
Posts
