Why Teach Math?

Before giving this article a read, I have always viewed learning about math history like why we learn science history. When we learn about the model of an atom, we first learned about the earliest models of atoms, before we even discovered electrons! Then, we moved onto the modern understanding of the atomic model. This is useful since all of our current knowledge is based on what is learned in the past, so in math, it is important to learn its history to understand where our current knowledge came from. We can refer to what we knew in the past to extrapolate our mathematical understanding to current topics that we may not know. And also, I think it’s very interesting to learn about how people thought of certain ideas that we take for granted (ex. When people thought the solar system revolved around the Earth).

The first stopping point for me is when the authors mentioned history as a bridge between math and other topics that the students might be more well-versed in. I think that using history to connect with the students will encourage them to make their own bridges between math and whatever they are familiar with. This will help them form their own understanding of math instead of relying on us to tell them everything. Another section that really got me thinking are the historical problems that the article mentioned, namely the ones that motivated the development of an entire mathematical domain… that’s just incredible! I remember learning about the prime number theorem in my number theory class (MATH 312), and it’s very enlightening to see that an entire branch of math just came from a simple theorem some time in history. In a classroom setting, I would love to start off the class with a simple theorem from history, and eventually adding more to it to the point it becomes its own field of study. We learned a lot from history, and we will keep learning lots from history, which is the fun part in mathematics. Another quick snippet I found interesting is using plays to portray mathematics as more “human-like.” Math is often the most daunting subject in many students’ eyes, but by making silly plays or re-enacting iconic moments in math history, I think the students will find math to be a more relatable subject to learn.

For my final thoughts, I have learned a lot on how the history of math can be useful in our curriculums. The biggest eye-opener for me is that math is still evolving, even though we have a “right answer” for everything. Math is still being optimized and improved upon, and we have its rich history from different cultures to thank. By learning from the past, and seeing what worked and what didn’t, we are able to demonstrate that math is a pretty “human” subject filled with failures and fascinating problems left to be solved. Reading this article also reminded me of a video on “math duels,” where in the past, mathematicians would give each other problems to solve in “duels” to see whose theorems and intellects are more worthy than others. I think by showing the students historical events like those, it makes math feel more relatable and fun to learn about! :)

Here’s the video if anyone wants to check it out: