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Research Genre 2

Is math really an important subject for people to learn? That is the biggest question the

essay is trying to answer. Math is a subject that has been taught in schools since the 14th century,

and ever since, it’s one of the most important subjects that schools make sure students are able to

learn. The actual question is, is math actually relevant to anything outside the subject and does it

help people in completing any tasks that are unrelated to it on a surface level? The answer to that

question is: yes, math has a lot more applications than one person would think. Among the many

tasks that math facilitates or is vital for include: counting sums of money, buying the groceries

and calculating the total price, doing taxes, making food with devices such as the microwave or a

furnace, reading and checking the time for scheduling purposes, figuring out distance between

one object and another (Shumow, Lee), and many more other examples. The subject of math

exists to facilitate the process of many daily tasks thanks to skills acquired from learning it. All

of these examples exist thanks to the fact that numbers are always present in these places and

commonly used in many other daily activities. From the many sources available that talked about

how important the subject is, it can be inferred that math is a good tool that can be used in many

different situations, since many of the given situations have something that actually relates to a

topic that math itself covers in detail.

Another thing about math that is important to cover is how it is taught to people, whether

it is at schools or at home. How crucial is it for students of math to actually learn the subject and

is there any way that the methods of teaching can be improved so that the students can learn the

subject more easily? One notable method that has made a big splash in the ways of making the

teaching of math is allowing the students to use a calculator (Lefkowitz, Mike) for helping with

difficult problems. While teaching the students how to do the formulas and calculations by hand
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is a good idea at teaching the fundamentals of math, it is also a lot more practical to teach them

with a calculator in hand given how more common it is for a person to have access to one, even

more so since it is becoming a basic feature in almost every smartphone in today’s day and age,

so not allowing them to use one makes less sense as time goes on and the calculator becomes

more publicly available. It doesn’t just end with the calculators either, there are many programs

who have been making moves to make the subject much easier to understand, such as ST Math,

Prodigy, and BYJU’s Future School program. Using technology to facilitate the teaching of math

is something that a lot of companies have started developing and something that will be seen

more of in the not so distant future as long as students and children continue struggling in

grasping the concept and how exactly it really works.

But how does math really help us when it comes to developing the mind? That is another

question that has been asked on whether or not math is an important subject that must be learned

by everyone and if it needs to continue to be taught at an advanced level. Does math really

develop the mind in a way that makes people smarter and better for their future? Another

question to which the answer is also yes, math does help the brain in developing itself for many

purposes. Research has shown that practicing math on a daily basis is not only a good thing that

keeps the brain healthy, it also improves problem solving thinking as well (Crowe, Ashley).

Furthermore, it also helps filling the human mind with both creativity and many other different

types of thinking that would otherwise people would lack development in, such as critical

thinking and analytical thinking, for instance. Math, at its core, helps thinking in many aspects

that it can be concurred that it is crucial for brain development and not just for knowing how the

actual subject works.

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Finally, it’s important to consider how students of math feel about the subject and

whether or not it is worth their time. Responses have been mixed (NY Times). Some students

believe that math is a valuable tool, and that it is also about gaining skills and putting them to use

elsewhere to succeed. Other students are more negative on the subject, some calling a waste of

time or saying that high-level math shouldn’t be necessary for students who are not pursuing a

degree in math. However, there are also students that are mixed on the subject, some saying that

math is important, but the way that is taught is outdated or not helpful enough for students to

understand it, with claims that if it were taught differently, it could actually showcase notable

improvements to the world. All these opinions, while different give many different perspectives

for math and the way that it is seen in the eyes of a student who is currently learning the subject.

In conclusion, while research has proven that math is a very beneficial subject for people

to learn about and how it helps develop skills, the people that learn the subject are not entirely

satisfied with the current way that math is being taught. Whether it’s because the more advanced

level feel unnecessary or it’s because the way teachers are currently teaching the subject is not

understandable enough, it’s clear that improvements can be made to reduce the amount of mixed

and negative opinions the subject currently has. The world must work together to find a way

where math becomes a less difficult subject to grasp, especially at the advanced-levels, where it

becomes more difficult to understand for a lot of people, as it will definitely benefit the world

and make it a better place for humanity to live in.

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Works Cited

Shumow, Lee. “Math Matters in Everyday Life.” Northern Illinois University, Northern Illinois
University, www.niu.edu/mathmatters/everyday-life/index.shtml. Accessed 26 Mar. 2024.

Acio. “Math in Daily Life: Uses, Importance and Facts.” ALLEN Overseas, ALLEN Overseas,
14 Dec. 2023, www.allenoverseas.com/blog/math-in-daily-life-uses-importance-and-facts/.

Maloney, John. “Top 8 Importance of Math in Our Daily Life.” Blog for Math Teachers &
Students - ByteLearn Blog, ByteLearn, 1 Sept. 2023,
www.bytelearn.com/articles/importance-of-math-in-daily-life/.

Crowe, Ashley. “Why Is Math Important? 9 Reasons Why Math Skills Improve Quality of Life.”
Prodigygame.Com, 23 Sept. 2022, www.prodigygame.com/main-en/blog/why-is-math-
important/.

Park, Kyumgee, et al. “International Commission on Mathematical Instruction.” The Role of

Mathematics in the Overall Curriculum | International Mathematical Union (IMU), ICME,
www.mathunion.org/icmi/role-mathematics-overall-curriculum. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Hub, Knowledge. “The Importance of Math in the Modern World.” The Knowledge Hub,
Knowledge Hub, 31 Mar. 2023, knowledge-hub.com/2023/03/31/the-importance-of-math-
in-the-modern-world/.

Lefkowitz, Mike. “Why Is Math so Important?” MIND Research Institute Blog, 2022,
blog.mindresearch.org/blog/why-is-math-so-important.

The Learning Network. “What Students Are Saying about the Value of Math” The New York
Times, The New York Times, 10 Nov. 2022, www.nytimes.com/2022/11/10/learning/what-
students-are-saying-about-the-value-of-math.html.