Why Does Math Matter?

Why do children - particularly those who don't show any special affinity or aptitude for mathematics - need anything more than a standard mathematical education? If a child is clearly not headed for a STEM career - does math really matter?

We've gotten this question with increasing intensity over the years, particularly from parents for whom the concept of extra math classes or an after school math program is just plain confusing.

 1. Math matters because thinking matters. Let's take sports as an example. Most children today participate in some form of extracurricular sport, even though few will go on to become professional athletes. Why? Because participating in sports develops a healthy foundation in ability and habit. Once these children grow into adults, even those who were not naturally athletically inclined will have this foundation to fall back on..

The ability to think well - critically, logically, and creatively - varies from person to person. And it's an ability that is highly rewarded regardless of profession. Math just happens to be the best tool humans currently have with which to develop the mind and ability to think well.

   2. Math matters because a child's potential isn't determined at birth. So often we hear, 'my child just isn't a math person,' and that statement upsets any educator who hears it. Struggling is not akin to lack of ability, and more often reflects that a subject wasn't properly introduced.

Young children are capable of abstract reasoning and higher-order thinking, much more so than their older peers, so starting early matters (as it does with language or playing an instrument). When an elementary school student is introduced to mathematics properly, when they start learning algebra early, research has shown that their brain function actually changes. Their cognitive development is pushed forward.

We continue to see this phenomenon twenty years and thousands of students later. Many children who came in needing math help come out math stars. It's why our mantra is that there's no such thing as a math person. No child's potential is predetermined.

   3. Math matters because math doesn't suck. It's true. Many parents shudder at the memory of learning math in school, and pass on that same negativity to their children. Understandably so. This happens because math is too often taught as a series of unconnected facts, to be memorized through grit. 

But that's not mathematics. Math is a language, a lens through which to understand the world. Any classroom in which math is taught this way is alive. Math schools in the former Soviet Union were filled with students loudly debating, shrieking with joy, and jumping out of their seats to answer questions. 

Being in this kind of environment is contagious - children catch on to a love of learning that stays with them throughout their lives.