Fresh Thinking in Mathematics — 2

In the first part of this article the author discussed four themes which he posed as fundamental if any big change for the good is to be made in mathematics teaching. Briefly, these were that mathematics should be continually created by every learner, that children should and can master elementary concepts before dealing with particular examples of them, and that if they are used to this then arithmetic conies more easily. Finally, that books and apparatus often conceal the mathematics which the teacher wants emphasised. This part deals mainly with the Cuisenaire‐Gattegno apparatus and the implied approach which, it is suggested, provides teachers with a complete and satisfactory answer to these four themes.