"Parse Tree" <parsetree at hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:cnC%8.10455$sb5.1055241 at news20.bellglobal.com...
> "John Knight" <johnknight at usa.com> wrote in message
> news:tOB%8.17816$Fq6.2124556 at news2.west.cox.net...> > "Zayton" <zayton at bellsouth.net> wrote in message
> > news:n4m%8.1374$ND5.293745 at e3500-atl2.usenetserver.com...> > >
> > >
> > > It means, more specifically that Asian educational systems teach
> > techniques
> > > for taking eurocentric tests.
> > >
> > > Joe
> > >
> >
> > Bunk. Asians couldn't care less about taking "eurocentric" tests. None
> of
> > the Asian countries who beat the pants off us at the 8th grade level
even
> > bothered to take the 12th grade test, because they already knew what
TIMSS
> > was supposed to discover for them.
> >
> > Do you "think" that 95% of Japanese high school gradutes COMPLETE
calculus
> > just because they emulate "eurocentric" tests? Heck, no. It's partly
> > because they recognize the value of calculus, partly because they're
> > *capable* of learning calculus, and partly because all their teachers
> *know*
> > calculus.
> >
> > Do you know why less than 5% of American students even take calculus in
> high
> > school? Because 12 years of an "American" public "education" makes them
> > uneducable--they CANNOT comprehend calculus, many of their teachers
don't
> > even know the multiplication tables, much less calculus, so most
American
> > students don't even know the value of calculus.
> >
> > Math is an international language. There's nothing at all "eurocentric"
> > about a math test.
>> Actually, Math is based on axioms. Since these axioms were created in
> Europe, it could be viewed as a very eurocentric system. Also, the
majority
> of theorems were written and proven in the western world.
>> Also, strictly speaking, calculus isn't incredibly useful. Higher level
> algebra is much more so.
>>
This is not correct. The Asians developed math even before Europeans did.
And you forgot to add "it's my opinion" to "calculus isn't incredibly
useful", because the opposite and far more credible opinion is that by the
Japanese (and the Koreans, Singaporeans, Taiwanese, Germans, French,
English, Norwegians, Swiss, Swedes, and even Italians and Spaniards) that
calculus is important enough to make sure that every student has the
opportunity to learn it.
The simple fact that we no longer do that, but USED to, should make you
wonder why so many people disagree with you.
John Knight
ps--I forgot to add that I believe you're a complete and total dunce for
even saying this, but maybe you already knew that?
