Knowing and Teaching Elementary Language Arts: A Math Lesson for English Teachers (Report‪)‬

Introduction When math educators in the United States talk about "the algebra problem," they aren't puzzling over a formula or an equation. They are struggling with the lingering effects of a pedagogical tradition dating to the establishment of widespread public education in America in the 19th century. Mandatory schooling became the law of the land in the 1850s, and its primary mandate was a utilitarian one: give us graduates who are literate enough to go straight from school to work. The majority of the jobs that needed filling were in a new sector of the economy, commerce, which served a burgeoning middle class. Shopkeepers and staff would need to be able to read competently and to add, subtract, multiply, and divide with speed and accuracy. This concern was reflected in the required school curriculum, in much the same way that "technology" is built in to curriculum today. That is, there may have been very broad variation from one state to another, but all 19th century states and school boards wanted their graduates to be able to survive in the world of 19th century work.