I have been coaching a few UNI students and noticed a strange thing: they very often have weakness in the very basics of math. They were taught at school to do the full function analysis, etc. but when they face simple basic math, for example fraction multiplication or summation, they get completely baffled by it. The do not know really well how to reduce fractions, "rule of three" is almost a rocket science for them, etc. etc. And I am talking about kids who have made it to Uni, so they came from gymnaise.
I am wondering if my sample has had a very peculiar selection bias (it maybe indeed that these kids needed my coaching exactly because they were the rare ones not understanding basic math), or it happens often?
Depending on where they plan to take their education, there are many newer theories which suggest that these skills aren't as important as traditionally considered.
I hope you're not judging by using this terminology. I didn't know what those two expressions refer to, but googling them shows them to be perfectly normal algebraic operations that I've been using since around age 12.
Are you saying that these kids can't understand and use basic algebra? Sounds bad to me, but then again, I've no idea how much of these sorts of things is taught in schools and universities these days, so can't really comment on how 'normal' this may be.
Yeap, I needed to google "rule of three" myself when I was asked about it. And am still amazed why someone created a name for trivial manipulations with fractions and equations. But I did face such questions, from kids coming from gymnaise. And I've seen a few times kids filling half-a page computations reducing fractions, they were not able to reduce them immediately and had to proceed in steps.
I am talking about 18-19 years old studying in Unis. Yes, all of them took usual math (not advanced) in gymnaise. And I know that some skills are presumed not needed, but I would have thought that everyone should be able to compute on the level of 12 year old kid.
If someone is following their kids, especially from the middle school up, I would be interested in their opinion on math (and perhaps science) instructions.
In my background and upbringing, 'maths' is the improper use. Hearing the term 'maths' irritates me, but I understand that is how it is used other places in the world.
I learned math in Russia and US, there they do not have any "rule of three". English is admittedly not my mother tongue, and I do make mistakes and typos, but I hope that despite them my question was nevertheless clear. I am asking opinion on the level of math instruction at schools in Switzerland.
I am always very grateful if someone shows me my mistakes, be it in math or English grammar.
It is the exact same technique, it is only a difference in graphic representation and how to you write it down. The advantage of the second one is that you not have to rewrite 34 : 234 = into some other notation, you can start right away.
Re "rule of three", this is just a very simple "solve for x". German, word for it is Dreisatz. Has been done ad nauseam in 6. Grade. Mostly in word form: Farmer Ueli has 2 acres of land which gives him 5 tons of potatoes each year. How much land does he need for 7 tons?
Interesting. I also went through basic math behind the Iron Curtain but we definitely had the rule of three.
Anyhoo back to your question - I found that up until 9th grade the "Eastern curriculum" was more advanced but the Swiss curriculum catches up in grades 10-13 (so Gymnasium, lycée, collège - whichever way the local name is). There was quite some emphasis on using a calculator in the early grades (i actually tutored a student who'd do *1 or /1 with the calculator...).
By end of grade 13 (at least the "scientific" curriculum) instruction and required knowledge was on par with the ("hardcore" scientific) Eastern curriculum. The actual teaching methods were pretty similar.
What you might witness in University is that some students come from backgrounds with less emphasis on "hard sciences" such as math and physics. I had a colleague in HEC who only had a French "Letters" Bac and barely had any math skills (granted she didn't last past the first semester).
It's probably a Continental Europe thing? The term is definitely used in teaching across various (apparently not all) countries here.
(Though truth be said when "modern math" appeared in the '60es and '70es the French curriculum eliminated the "regle de trois" and replaced it with the "linearity" concept. Which didn't work out that well hence the return...)
I had a comprehensive scientific education in the UK and never heard this called the "rule of three". We simply didn't distinguish it in any way - we just learnt how to generally rearrange algebraic equations.
I just googled it, and think I now know why - this is how the "rule of three" used to be described in the most popular UK maths textbook in the 19th Century ( Cocker's Arithmetick ):
I graduated from school #2, Moscow, meh-mat PhD afterwards, then LSE and UCLA. Had never heard about "rule of three" before I came here to Switzerland. But perhaps I just forgot...