Crazy Arithmetic One pen cost 8 dollars and you bought 16 of them. How much did it cost altogether? A. 8 x 16 B. 16 x 8 The answer is A and if you are like me, who chose B, you get zilch. According to some math teacher, you have to choose A because it is logical and B is not. This is the part that confused me most. Both A and B come down to 128. So why is B illogical? Why would teachers try to restrict and regulate how I calculate? I remember I was quite strong in math in elementary and junior high (and became real bad in senior high because every spare moment I had, I would pick up the English book and almost never, the math book). I got 100 all the time. Luckily I was not tested on this question; otherwise 100 would have flown out of the window. I’ve also noticed that if I want to do mental calculation, I would do 16 x 8 and not 8 x16. There is no particular reason. It’s just easier for me to do it this way. My friends out there, are you the same as me? I wonder. I often shared with ETs the three cases of crazy English test I’ve encountered. First, when I was in the third grade, there was one question from Health Study. We should do number two _____ a day. A. once B. twice C. any time So which one do you choose? I chose C and got 99 on the test. The correct answer was A. I was totally confused about the answer, so being an outgoing and BRAVE little girl, I went to ask my teacher why? Well, she said if we want to be healthy, we should do it once and preferably do it in the morning. After hearing this, I immediately objected. I said, “But all my lifetime, I always did it any time I wanted and needed.” So do you think the teacher changed her answer for me? (To be continued)
Posted on: Tue, 26 Nov 2013 00:50:56 +0000
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