Curiosity In Math

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Teaching math beyond the basics is unusable unless one teaches a person to be curious instead. Can this statement prove that basic math taught today is useless, unless potential is realized in the curiosity that one might hold? What does curiosity mean? The formal definition of “curiosity” in the Webster dictionary is listed as an adjective. Questioning: inquisitive; eager for information. So as one focuses and awakens their curiosity to help solve the toughest arithmetic problems they are able to move beyond the basics that are taught each day and become a successful problem solver. Take for instance, the operational definition of curiosity which helps to empower one to feel confident and able to conquer all goals that are pursued …show more content…

Part of this difficulty arises out of the quantitative nature of probability and the general problem that many students experience with quantification. Compounding the problem is the abstract nature of probability and statistics.” A person must have a sense of curiosity built in. A math whiz is not curious about what piece of clothing look good with what matching accessories. They would only be curious about how many accessories it takes to complete the outfit. Each person can move beyond the basics of math and take it one step further if they are equipped properly with curiosity leading the …show more content…

Peter Higgins, in his article titled, “Mathematics for the curious” he explains “in order to understand numbers to a useful extent, a pupil needs to do lots of arithmetic. It is not the answers that is important, but the development of the skill required to obtain them. Doing arithmetic instills a basic familiarity with numbers and a confidence in handling them” (pg.27). Awakening curiosity will not only help a person go beyond the basics in math and accompany them as they achieve higher levels of completion, but it will help them to retain valuable information that will bring them into the future of solving numeral mathematical

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