It is commonly heard statement from school children as well as their parents that maths is a very difficult subject. Most would somehow like to see the end of it and breathe a sigh of relief when they switch on to a course that does not demand the teaching of mathematics. This is very unfortunate for mathematics is intrinsically very beautiful to be admired like a painting by Van Gogh or Raja Ravi Varma. Also, at the same time the subject is very essential to the growth of many other disciplines. It is often called the Queen of Sciences or the handmaiden of sciences. But its influence transcends the boundary between the sciences and humanities. Indeed mathematical techniques are useful in many contexts that have nothing to do with science.
In 1957 when the Soviet Union launched the first satellite Sputnik, their rivals, the United States sat up in a panic. The space exploit of the Soviets indicated their high degree of preparedness with the cutting edge technology. The U.S. realized that to match it, the teaching of mathematics had to receive boost and so a crash programme in mathematics was followed in the United States.
The purpose behind launching the NMD was to make mathematics more popular and acceptable. To this end several approaches could be followed provided each is pursued at the 'above threshold' level.
We will discuss a few next.....
Well written ! :)
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