Crunching the Numbers: The Debate Over Calculator Use in Math Education
Photo by Karolina Grabowska
When I was in high school in the 90s, one of my math teachers said to me, “Naomi, you’re not always going to have a calculator in your pocket.” Well, welcome to the twenty-first century where in fact I do have a calculator in my pocket at all times in the form of my cell phone. The bottom line is that calculators are here to stay, trying to pretend like students don’t have constant access will not help them. Calculators can be valuable learning tools in math class and students need to learn how and when to utilize them.
So why are so many educators against their students use calculators? When asked, educators have reported the following reasons:
•Calculators will promote student laziness
•Students will not be stimulated/challenged if they use calculators
•Using calculators impedes the development of basic mathematical skills
•The use of calculators will create a dependency on technology.
I recently received an email from a Math Department Chair about the use of calculators in 7th grade. Here is what she had to say:
In 7th grade, our standard is to be able to do all computations with Rational numbers. So if we are working on just integers, adding/subtracting/multiplying/dividing and my student cannot even do the basic computation with whole numbers, what should I do? My current “bandaid fix” is to give the students basic 4 function calculators. That way I can assess if they understand the rule. Is this making things worse? If so what should I be doing? Because I really have 50% or more of my kids that can’t tell me what 6+12 is or 12-8. So how can they tell me what -6+-12 is?
I was really excited to get her email and I love the question! That means after she attended my webinar she was really processing the information and thinking of applications. Here is the response I sent:
That is a great question! It depends on the goal. Here's what I mean - if it's during your regular standards-based instruction - by all means give them a calculator so you can still have them work on high rigor grade level standards including multi-step word problems. We don't want the computation issue to impede their on-level instruction as that would cause them to become further behind. However, during intervention time (remediation at Tier 2 and/or 3) then your priority area of need would be computation for those students and when you are specifically working on closing the gap in that area they cannot use a calculator.
Now that response was geared towards her specific question. But here’s the general take-away:
If you are working on computation skills in any tier of instruction then students should NOT use a calculator. Even students with disabilities should use other supports or accommodations when the goal is to work on computation skills such as multiplying 2 digit numbers, adding with regrouping, etc.
If the goal is anything besides computation then let them use a calculator to minimize the barrier of lack of computation skills. We can’t let struggles with computation interfere with students ability to engage with high rigor grade level standards and concepts. In this case the calculator is a tool to even the playing field. We want students to use their mental bandwidth on critical thinking and problem solving, not on remembering how to regroup across zeros.
Suydam and Brosnan (1993) reported that research from more than 100 studies indicated that the use of calculators:
•Promoted achievement
•Improved problem-solving skills
•Increased understanding of mathematical ideas.
The use of calculators can allow students to become better problem solvers and strengthen their basic understanding of mathematical operations. Using the calculator to solve the more basic computations permits students more time to concentrate on the deeper math understandings.
Brendan R. Hodnett, a special education teacher in Middletown, New Jersey, and an adjunct professor at Hunter College agrees in his blog post on Understood.org, Will using a calculator keep my child from getting better at math?
NCTM has an official position on the use of calculators in elementary grades:
Calculators in the elementary grades serve as aids in advancing student understanding without replacing the need for other calculation methods. Calculator use can promote the higher-order thinking and reasoning needed for problem solving in our information- and technology-based society. Their use can also assist teachers and students in increasing student understanding of and fluency with arithmetic operations, algorithms, and numerical relationships and enhancing student motivation. Strategic calculator use can aid students in recognizing and extending numeric, algebraic, and geometric patterns and relationships.
Remember that calculators can serve to help level the playing field for some and "help some students to more quickly develop number sense, gain mathematical insight, and reasoning skills" (Pomerantz, 1997). If we think of this in terms of Universal Design for Learning, the calculator is a tool that should be available to all students to minimize barriers to learning. Checkpoint 4.2 is about optimizing access to tools and assistive technologies, which can include calculators.
Every state has guidance on accommodations and modifications for students with disabilities (SwD). Check out your state’s guidance for the use of calculators specifically as an accommodation for SwD and for accessibility purposes.