http://washingtonexaminer.com/calculator-ban-proposed-for-va.-tests/article/2514800#.UMLSmM9QCZW
Ugh. I, like many 9th grade math teachers, had students who still hadn't mastered their facts. Generally, I didn't worry - for many, it was just a matter of weeks until the summer rust shook off and I saw improvement. A teacher in Virginia has seen this same problem and concluded (a) students don't know their facts because they're allowed to use calculators and (b) the state should fix this by banning calculator use on state tests, which would force middle school teachers to take kids' calculators away and focus on fact mastery. Maybe to help kids learn to spell we should take away spell-checkers, and to keep them fit we could take away their chairs and make them jog in place instead.
Ugh. I, like many 9th grade math teachers, had students who still hadn't mastered their facts. Generally, I didn't worry - for many, it was just a matter of weeks until the summer rust shook off and I saw improvement. A teacher in Virginia has seen this same problem and concluded (a) students don't know their facts because they're allowed to use calculators and (b) the state should fix this by banning calculator use on state tests, which would force middle school teachers to take kids' calculators away and focus on fact mastery. Maybe to help kids learn to spell we should take away spell-checkers, and to keep them fit we could take away their chairs and make them jog in place instead.