Who is Dijkstra to espouse about the best way of teaching mathematics to primary school children? I think it would be equivalent to a researcher in education deciding they know the best way to design a calculus.
The manner in which Dijkstra writes about this is very off-putting - it sounds arrogant and one-sided, dismissive. In fact he comes across as ignorant, which of course, he is, in this area.
Worryingly, I see a lot of similar writing in CS blogs. Often authors present as fact their opinions on a topic that they are not knowledgeable about.
When I read something like that, I look for the balance in their argument. If they say "well, what are the good sides to teaching by analogy? When does it work best? What is the evidence that teaching basic arithmetic is done well?" then I begin to take them seriously.
Where in this essay does he "espouse about the best way of teaching mathematics to primary school children"? It seems to be about CS education, not primary school math.
Comments
Who is Dijkstra to espouse about the best way of teaching mathematics to primary school children? I think it would be equivalent to a researcher in education deciding they know the best way to design a calculus.
The manner in which Dijkstra writes about this is very off-putting - it sounds arrogant and one-sided, dismissive. In fact he comes across as ignorant, which of course, he is, in this area.
Worryingly, I see a lot of similar writing in CS blogs. Often authors present as fact their opinions on a topic that they are not knowledgeable about.
When I read something like that, I look for the balance in their argument. If they say "well, what are the good sides to teaching by analogy? When does it work best? What is the evidence that teaching basic arithmetic is done well?" then I begin to take them seriously.
[edit: typo]
Where in this essay does he "espouse about the best way of teaching mathematics to primary school children"? It seems to be about CS education, not primary school math.
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