Math Classes spice things up

[HaloCory22]

http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-nyc-teachers-give-homework-mixing-slavery-and-math-to-4thgraders-20130222,0,4880504.story

 

 

New York City educators have learned the hard way that there are some things that just don’t mix -- like using slavery to teach math.

The principal of P.S. 59, a well-thought-of elementary school that draws students from Midtown and the area around the United Nations, told the Daily News that she was “appalled” by the assignment and has ordered sensitivity training for all of the staff.

“In a slave ship, there can be 3,799 slaves. One day, the slaves took over the ship. 1,897 are dead. How many slaves are alive?”

[Glen]

The only thing missing is the teacher saying something along the lines of "what, I didn't say they were black slaves, just slaves.  They could be white!"

[gotbeer]

http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-nyc-teachers-give-homework-mixing-slavery-and-math-to-4thgraders-20130222,0,4880504.story

 

 

New York City educators have learned the hard way that there are some things that just don’t mix -- like using slavery to teach math.

The principal of P.S. 59, a well-thought-of elementary school that draws students from Midtown and the area around the United Nations, told the Daily News that she was “appalled” by the assignment and has ordered sensitivity training for all of the staff.

“In a slave ship, there can be 3,799 slaves. One day, the slaves took over the ship. 1,897 are dead. How many slaves are alive?”

 

 

None of them.  The slaves didn't know how to sail a ship.

[Ray McKigney]

I think it's racist and unacceptable. It's funny, but inappropriate.

[CaliAngel]

Race wasn't even brought up. 

[Ray McKigney]

I saw this story on the TV news. It was implied that the slaves were African-American.

[Spencer]

When, in the history of the world, have there been 3,799 white slaves on a ship?

 

aaaaaand that's why it's racist.

[stevestevens]

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_slave_trade#section_1

To a smaller degree, Arabs also enslaved Europeans. According to Robert Davis between 1 million and 1.25 million Europeans were captured by Barbary corsairs, who were vassals of the Ottoman Empire, and sold as slavesbetween the 16th and 19th centuries.[8][9] These slaves were captured mainly from seaside villages from Italy, Spain, Portugal and also from more distant places like France or England, the Netherlands, Ireland and evenIceland.[10] The impact of these attacks was devastating – France, England, and Spain each lost thousands of ships, and long stretches of the Spanish and Italian coasts were almost completely abandoned by their inhabitants. Pirateraids discouraged settlement along the coast until the 19th century

[2112]

None of them.  The slaves didn't know how to sail a ship.

I was going to say none - they're not slaves anymore.

[Glen]

This is a math problem, not a word problem.

[GuliblGuy]

There CAN be? This question is unsolvable with the info given. Suck it teachers.

[HaloMagic]

3800? Did they load up the Titanic for a slaving run?

[arch stanton]

Slaves is a term some might still relate to. They should use something more vague and distant to the kids like "American citizens killed in drone strikes without due process and a total lack of transparency or accountability because they have terrorist sounding names."

[nate]

I am really bothered by the fact that they couldn't fit one more slave on the ship for a round number.

[Lhalo]

They did but one slave died before the revolt took place.

[Taylor]

The ones who died fell out of the boat 200 feet from shore.

[Wallerrrr]

to be fair, it sounded like it ended well for the surviving slaves.

 

how many white people died is what im worried about

[Ray McKigney]

to be fair, it sounded like it ended well for the surviving slaves.

 

how many white people died is what im worried about

 

Even one is too many.

[nate]

The ones who died fell out of the boat 200 feet from shore.

 

LOL!