I built this image around the light reflection behind the face of the child working on a math problem. It outlines his profile and seems to symbolize the knowledge that may be flowing through his mind at this moment.
Thanks, Katlyn. I'm not sure why "learning differently" is sad, but if this image makes you think about how other cultures teach and learn mathematics, it is doing its job.
Thanks, Celia -- yes, it is an intense confrontation. And quite intimate, as well. I had the feeling that this child already knew more about mathematics than I ever knew. And thanks, Tim, for bringing your math teaching background to bear on this image. I find it fascinating that this bare bones Cuban school seems to be teaching a more flexible and less rigid approach to mathematics than we are teaching in here in the US.
As a former elementary teach who taught math - I find this interesting as a portrait of the flexibility in mathematics which we don't normally teach. He is clearly doing division - yet his set up is different from the way we are taught. Mathematics is a fluid and dynamic field, unfortunately we teach it as a rigid set of rules.
Your vantage point and proximity gives us a very intimate experience of this young boy working hard on his math. I can almost physically feel his immense concentration!
A point well made, Carol. He is indeed learning to actually think in mathematical terms, something that you can't really do with a calculator. I would never have made this image if not for the halo of light outlining his profile. I could actually sense the gears turning within his head.
I am intrigued by the math calcuation on the board. These days it seems that kids rely way too much on calculators and computer electronics to figure a simple math problem. Yes, it's been a while since I was in school learning this stuff. I do love the halo the highlight on the board around the boy's head, maybe suggesting that he is learning the right way even though it is slower and non=automatic.