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Mathematical literacy is termed by the British as "numeracy," which is the ability to cope confidently with the mathematical demands of adult life. This is very important to the success and vibrancy of a strong nation. Mathematics is depended upon in more ways than citizens want to believe and in order to become a contributing citizen to the well being of this nation, mathematics has to be taken more serious by the United States. The importance of mathematics is increasingly becoming more evident to society as the world changes daily. Mathematics is needed in areas of science, business, finance, health, and defense to name a few. Technology has "mathematicized" the workplace and society. The world is so technologically advanced today with things like cellular phones, DVD systems, the Internet, and further advancements in space technology becoming more prevalent each day. On page two, the author states, "Today's mathematics opens doors to tomorrow's jobs. As successive waves of immigrants have used this country's educational system to secure better lives for themselves and their children, so today's children the world over are using mathematical training as a platform in which to build up their lives." Another thing to consider when debating if mathematical literacy is essential is the statement made on page three. "Since mathematics is the foundation of science and technology, it serves as a key to opportunity and careers. Moreover, mathematics contributes to literacy certain distinctive habits of mind that are of increasing importance to a citizenry in a technological age. It is also mentioned, "The arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and calculus taught nowadays are mere shadow images of modern mathematics. The mathematical sciences of today blend deep new results from these traditional areas with methods from such applied fields as statistics, operations research, and computer science. One of the oldest myths by American students is that algebra and other such math applications are not needed in their future. This is totally untrue and is pointed out in the text by a statement of reality which reads," Just because students do not use algebra anywhere except in algebra class does not mean that they will not need mathematics in the future. Over 75 percent of all jobs require proficiency in simple algebra and geometry, either as a prerequisite to a training program or as part of a licensure examination." This is a clear indication of the importance of mathematics in our current age, which is very technologically advanced, and clearly lets you know that without a clear understanding of mathematic applications you will have a very hard time functioning. Here in the United States you are considered illiterate if you can't read and you are often ridiculed for that. But when it comes to mathematics, we have a tendency to joke about it or accept it as our weak point. This behavior, or attitude about mathematics has been ongoing for years. In the area titled "Attitudes," the author comes up with this explanation: " the American public tends to assume that differences in accomplishment in school mathematics are due primarily to differences in innate ability rather than to differences in individual effort or in opportunity to learn. These beliefs surface in many ways in studies of parents' views, in common self-deprecating remarks ("I never could do math"), and in public infatuation with early tracking as a strategy for mathematics education." When reading this, one can relate with such statements with familiarity. I'm sure that we all have heard those remarks somewhere or another. This is saying that if your parents have this attitude, more than likely it's going to be instilled in you if you don't receive high marks in mathematics. The section goes on to read, "One consequence of such beliefs is that parents often accept and sometimes even except their children's poor performance in mathematics. Another consequence is that adults who determine policy in mathematics education often measure the mathematical needs of today's students by their own meager and outdated mathematical accomplishments. From the faulty premise that most students "can't do math" and the fact that many adults who never learned mathematics have succeeded without it, they rationalize that official expectations should be limited to minimal base levels. The result is a spiral of lowered expectations in which poor performance in mathematics has become socially acceptable." It is also said that peer pressure often makes good performance in math socially unacceptable. This is clearly a deep-rooted problem, which is indicated by the continued statements persuing. "Public attitudes about mathematics are shaped primarily by adults' childhood school experiences. Consequently, mathematics is seen not as something that people actually use, but as a best forgotten (and often painful) requirement of school. For most members of the public, their lasting memories of school mathematics are unpleasant since so often the last mathematics course they took convinced them to take no more. Some adults blame the "new math" for their fears, having become convinced of their own mathematical ineptitude by instruction steeped in premature abstraction. Others have been made apprehensive by a teacher's rigid view of mathematics as a string of procedures to be memorized, where right answers count more than right thinking. Either extreme mindless abstraction or mindless calculation yields mindless mathematics. These widespread fears reinforce common public perceptions that mathematicians are responsible for making mathematics hard and that only geniuses are capable of learning mathematics. Children respond to expectations of their parents and teachers. Its no wonder that many students stop studying mathematics as soon as it becomes optional, since society provides so few hero-images for whom perseverance in mathematics has paid off. When parents think that ability supersedes effort, most students never learn the value of effort. "Hard work pays off" should be society's message to those who study mathematics." This is an attitude that is only displayed in America. In other countries, students, parents, and teachers all expect that most students can master mathematics if only they work hard enough. The record of accomplishment in these countries and in some intervention programs in the United States shows that most students can learn much more mathematics than is commonly assumed in this country. The objective of elementary school mathematics education should be preparation of life. In elementary school, children learn the mathematical skills needed for daily life. This is achieved by developing number sense (arithmetic). Like common sense, number sense produces good and useful results with the least amount of effort. It is not mindlessly mechanical, but flexible and synthetic in attitude. It evolves from concrete experience and takes shape in oral, written, and symbolic expression. Links to geometry, to chance, and to calculation should reinforce formal arithmetic experience to produce multiple mental images of quantitative phenomena. School children need to learn how to use mathematics for common tasks making change, measuring quantities, planning schedules, and estimating chances. The best ways for elementary school students to learn mathematics is though number sense, which builds on arithmetic as words build on the alphabet. Numbers arise in measurement, in chance, in data, and in geometry, as well as in arithmetic. Mathematics in elementary school should weave all these threads together to create in children a robust sense of numbers. Calculators are a good way to do this. In Everybody Counts: A Report to the Nation on the Future of Mathematics Education, you are given a wonderful insight on the attitude that some concerned Americans are displaying. There are countless Americans that are consumed with the bleak outlook that is welcomed by this nation's academic imbalancement. Not only is it unacceptable, but also it needs to be swept away like a plague in an effort to fortify our nation's academic outlook. We, as a nation, have to change our attitudes about mathematics and the importance of achieving academic excellence in mathematics. I applaud the efforts of this book.