Sam Altman: 'We adapted to calculators and changed what we tested in math class'

The teaching of math has not caught up with the computational reality we live in. Computers are ubiquitous and most of what is taught in basic algebra classes is taught due to legacy reasons.

Very few equations can be solved by hand and those that can be solved by hand can be solved by a computer algebra system. Almost all equations students learn to solve are those that are reducible to linear or quadratic equations. What is the point of such exercises when most equations are not of these types? Learning to find the equation to model a situation is far more important than learning how to solve that equation by hand. Learning what it means to numerically approximate an equation’s solutions and where such approximations might fail is what we should teach.

In the past computation was hard. We had tables of logs and other numerical data. Doing things by hand was a limitation of the pre-computing era. Let’s not keep math the way we did prior to the present reality of ubiquitous computing.

Sam Altman's more complete quote from the headline: "We adapted to calculators and changed what we tested for in math class, I imagine."

If you prefer not to imagine, here's a literature review of attitudes toward calculator use since 1975: https://digitalcommons.cedarville.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?re...

Excerpted from the potential applications of the findings:

> This study also helps educators and school district administrators examine continual themes of concern since 1975. Many of the apprehensions that were presented at the onset of popular calculator usage are still concerns today. Though culture and times have changed, many issues still exist. Teachers can use the policies of the past and principles followed and evaluate the appropriateness of them in classrooms today. Understanding concerns that prevailed for decades will help teachers maintain perspective today.

> Lastly, this study is a reminder that calculator usage is more than a right or wrong issue. Parents, teachers, and educators are not debating if calculators should be used. Rather, they are trying to understand how using calculators effects students in the long run. They attempt to predict how changes in policy will effect students once they leave the educational setting and become contributing members in society. This study prompts educators to consider the importance of their attitudes and the decisions that result because of them.

Bans on ChatGPT are triage. "We adapted to calculators" means still debating how they should be used and their long-term effects, 50 years later.