Sacha R. answered • 02/11/23
Patient Professional with 25 Years Teaching, Tutoring, & Advising
Many people (including myself!) experience a phase of doubting their math literacy. Maybe we say, "I'm not math-minded," or "I don't do math." It is surprisingly easy to get over this self-concept if you block out the traumatic memories of timed tests and rote memorization to refocus on what you need to know in your daily life.
The first thing I noticed when beggining as a math literacy tutor is that mental math is often the cause of most errors. Simply writing out the steps involved at each turn of a problem may seem like busy work, but it is the building block of accuracy. Continuous use of skills will eventually develop into effective mental shortcuts.
I also truly appreciate the recent emphasis on math as it applies to practical concerns. Conversions from Farenheit to Celsius, dosage adjustments for OTC meds, recipe adjustments, painting projects... they all use orders of operations, multiplication/division, and a mix of decimals and fractions. These are great skill-builders.
The most important step to improving math literacy is to replace the "I can't" with some patience and a back-to-basics approach that is relevant to your personal endeavors.
