The Statesman – Basab Dasgupta
“The point of this story is that mathematical skills are ingrained among all Indians even at the lowest social level. The situation is diametrically opposite in the USA where even college-educated kids cannot do simple addition and multiplication without a calculator. Now that I am retired I have plenty of time on my hand and I decided to do occasional private tutoring of high school students in math. It was not for money but I was curious to see what is being taught these days and how. What I have learnt is alarming to say the least. There are two practices widely followed in most American schools these days: A) Text-books have virtually disappeared and have been replaced by teachers’ notes available only on laptop or tablet computers connected to some school website.”(more)