It didn’t take long for the PC police to mobilize after a teacher at Manhattan’s PS 59 asked her fourth-graders to come up with homework questions combining math and history. One result was this gem:
“One slave got whipped five times a day. How many times did he get whipped in a month? (31 days)”
The city acted as you would expect. The Education Department declared the exercise “unacceptable.” The teacher apologized. And the principal has ordered a dose of sensitivity training for the whole staff.
In the spirit of public service, we offer some questions that combine current affairs and math without setting off alarms:
* How many 8-oz. cups of soda do you need to fill a 32-oz. Big Gulp? (Answer: four)
* A Rockefeller Institute report estimates New York City would save $700 million if its employees paid the same share of their health-insurance premiums that state employees do. If the total compensation for a city police officer averages $180,000 a year, how many more police officers could the city put on the street with those savings on health insurance? (A: about 3,888)
* Over six years starting in 2005, the Citizens Union found that 13 New York state lawmakers left office due to ethical misconduct or criminal charges. At that rate, how many will leave for similar reasons from next year through 2025? (A: 26)
We’re sure our readers could come up with even more suggestions that would make math interesting — and give our children a real education. If so, we’d love to hear them.