Test: "How many buses does the army need to transport 1,128 soldiers if each bus holds 36 soldiers?"
Many students: "31 remainder 12."
Is it fair to say that these students really understand division?
(paraphrasing Understanding By Design)
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Galactic brain take: they understand division just fine, but they ignore he paintjob of “real life problem” because it appears meaningless to them and the class they’re in 😁
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I think if it was clearer that people *could not* fit in only 31 buses, it would be easier for them to know.
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Fantastic. The difference between knowing how to use a tool and understanding what it’s for.
I wonder if this would be less prevalent if math worksheets didn’t just contain 20 questions that all required the same process to solve.
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Why soldiers? Can’t it be something inherently nicer without normalizing the presence of heavily-armed men?
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Are the buses self driven? (Drivers?) Is there a time constrain? (Can 1 bus the job over a long period of time)
Perhaps a less ambiguous question:
How many sleeping tents does the army need in one night for 1,128 soldiers if each tent holds 36 people?
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