saxon math : Changes Will Be Substantial
Thank you for writing your article entitled, "Why Now, Saxon?" I too am very concerned about the future of the Saxon textbooks, and I hope that Harcourt does not do a "dumb-down" on them. However, I think your article may be a little premature, and with some incorrect facts as well, could lead otherwise would-be Saxon users to consider another, less beneficial curricula. Forgive me if I misread the article, but it seemed like you wrote it as if John Saxon was still alive. Unfortunately, he passed away in October of 1996. In addition, he never received a Ph.D. I believe you referred to him as Dr. John Saxon at least once.
I purchased all of the new paperback, homeschool editions (which were published before Harcourt bought Saxon) as soon as they were available, and I have studied them thoroughly. I have seen no evidence that any of the books have been dumbed down.
When he was president of Saxon Publishers, Frank Wang visited … and … Since then, I have had the privilege of meeting and getting to know some of John Saxon's closest friends and supporters. In doing so I have learned that we have a common vision for teaching real math to American students.
One error that you made in your article was stating that the rewritten books (and I am assuming that you mean the new paperback editions) have a different order of topics. Yes, there are some different lesson titles and some new material inserted, but the most important topics are still in an incremental order. For example, the new Math 87, 3rd edition, is about 99% similar to the hardback 87 2nd edition.
Another error that I saw in your article was in describing stem and leaf problems as "fuzzy, dumbed down fluff." The inclusion of these problems is because of the increasing need for students to understand methods of data analysis that are typically used by scientists. Stem and leaf plots are foundational to a study of statistics. For example, on page 51 of the statistics textbook that I used in graduate school, it says, "The stem and leaf plot is a clever, simple device for constructing a histogram like picture of a frequency distribution" (Ott, R. Lyman, An Introduction to Statistical Methods and Data Analysis, 4th ed. Duxbury Press, Belmont, CA 1993). With 120 lessons and 12 investigations in each of the new books, I don't think that stem and leaf problems take away from other important mathematics concepts that should be taught in these grades, and I don't think they should be considered as "dumbed down fluff." Yes, the new books are unfortunately more expensive, but I think they are better and more helpful to homeschool parents, especially with the solutions manuals.
I don't think the efficient, incremental, building-block philosophies that John Saxon taught have been lost yet. As Isaac Newton once said, "If I have seen farther, it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants," and Lord willing, I do not plan on letting the Saxon legacy disappear. I will continue to … promote Saxon textbooks until I see evidence that Harcourt is actually dumbing down the curriculum. When I do see that happening I am in a position to stand on Saxon's shoulders and make a better curriculum very quickly. We have many families who are counting on us to teach their children math and we will not let them down.
I hope that your article has not caused anyone to shy away from Saxon materials prematurely and go and purchase an inferior product that may not be as helpful to their child, but if you think it may have had that impact (and I think it does), then I think you should write a new article and correct some of your mistakes and encourage people to continue to use Saxon materials including the new paperback editions. I realize Harcourt could have had some influence on these changes, however I see no evidence of dumbing down the curriculum so far.
Thank you again for your article and for your concern for the education of America's children. If you would like to discuss this further please feel free to contact me. Keep up the great work.
by Linda Schrock Taylor
I purchased all of the new paperback, homeschool editions (which were published before Harcourt bought Saxon) as soon as they were available, and I have studied them thoroughly. I have seen no evidence that any of the books have been dumbed down.
When he was president of Saxon Publishers, Frank Wang visited … and … Since then, I have had the privilege of meeting and getting to know some of John Saxon's closest friends and supporters. In doing so I have learned that we have a common vision for teaching real math to American students.
One error that you made in your article was stating that the rewritten books (and I am assuming that you mean the new paperback editions) have a different order of topics. Yes, there are some different lesson titles and some new material inserted, but the most important topics are still in an incremental order. For example, the new Math 87, 3rd edition, is about 99% similar to the hardback 87 2nd edition.
Another error that I saw in your article was in describing stem and leaf problems as "fuzzy, dumbed down fluff." The inclusion of these problems is because of the increasing need for students to understand methods of data analysis that are typically used by scientists. Stem and leaf plots are foundational to a study of statistics. For example, on page 51 of the statistics textbook that I used in graduate school, it says, "The stem and leaf plot is a clever, simple device for constructing a histogram like picture of a frequency distribution" (Ott, R. Lyman, An Introduction to Statistical Methods and Data Analysis, 4th ed. Duxbury Press, Belmont, CA 1993). With 120 lessons and 12 investigations in each of the new books, I don't think that stem and leaf problems take away from other important mathematics concepts that should be taught in these grades, and I don't think they should be considered as "dumbed down fluff." Yes, the new books are unfortunately more expensive, but I think they are better and more helpful to homeschool parents, especially with the solutions manuals.
I don't think the efficient, incremental, building-block philosophies that John Saxon taught have been lost yet. As Isaac Newton once said, "If I have seen farther, it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants," and Lord willing, I do not plan on letting the Saxon legacy disappear. I will continue to … promote Saxon textbooks until I see evidence that Harcourt is actually dumbing down the curriculum. When I do see that happening I am in a position to stand on Saxon's shoulders and make a better curriculum very quickly. We have many families who are counting on us to teach their children math and we will not let them down.
I hope that your article has not caused anyone to shy away from Saxon materials prematurely and go and purchase an inferior product that may not be as helpful to their child, but if you think it may have had that impact (and I think it does), then I think you should write a new article and correct some of your mistakes and encourage people to continue to use Saxon materials including the new paperback editions. I realize Harcourt could have had some influence on these changes, however I see no evidence of dumbing down the curriculum so far.
Thank you again for your article and for your concern for the education of America's children. If you would like to discuss this further please feel free to contact me. Keep up the great work.
by Linda Schrock Taylor
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home