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26% on the nation's report card,

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that's the percentage 
of U.S. 12th graders 


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who are proficient in Math.

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In America, we pride ourselves
as being an exceptional country.

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But does 26% sound exceptional to you?

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Raise your hand if you think as a country
we need to do way better than this.

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I'm with you.

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We all need Math, but why 
are so many kids confused by it?

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Is it because only 26% of people
are hardwired for Math,

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while 74% are not?

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After working with thousands of kids,
I can tell you,

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this isn't the case at all.

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Kids don't understand Math

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because we've been teaching it 
as a dehumanized subject.

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But if we make Math human again,
it will start to make sense again.

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You're probably wondering:


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"How was Math ever human
in the first place?"

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So, think about it.

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(Laughter)

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Math is a human language, 
just like English, Spanish or Chinese,

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because it allows people 
to communicate with each other.

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Even in ancient times, 
people needed the language of Math

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to conduct trade, to build monuments,

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and to measure the land for farming.

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This idea of Math as a language
isn't exactly new.

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A great philosopher once said:

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"The laws of nature are written
in the language of mathematics."

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So you see? 
Even Galileo agrees with me.

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(Laughter)

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But somewhere along the line, 


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we've taken this language of math,


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which is about the real world around us,

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and we've abstracted it
beyond recognition.

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And that's why kids are confused.

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Let me show you what I mean.

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Read this 3rd grade 
California Math Standard

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and see if it would make sense 
to an eight year-old.

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"Understand a fraction 1/b
as the quantity formed by 1 part

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when a whole is partitioned
into b equal parts."

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Understand the fraction a/b

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as the quantity formed 
by a parts of size 1/b.

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(Laughter)

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And if you gave this description
to an 8 year-old,

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you'd probably get a reaction...
like this.

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(Laughter)

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To a Math expert,
this standard makes sense,

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But to a kid, it's absolute torture.

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I chose this example
specifically because fractions

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are fundational to algebra,
trigonometry and even calculus.

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So if kids don't understand fractions
in elementary and middle school,

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they have a tough road
ahead of them in high-school

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But is there a way to make fractions
simple and easy for kids to understand?

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Yes!

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Just remember that Math is a language 
and use that to your advantage.

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For example, when I teach 5th graders
how to add and subtract fractions,

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I start with the apples + apples lesson.

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First I ask, 
"What's 1 apple plus 1 apple?"

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And kids will often say 2,
which is partially correct.

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Have them include the words as well
since math is a language.

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So it's not just 2, it's 2 apples.

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Next is 3 pencils plus 2 pencils.

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You all know that pencils + pencils
give you pencils,

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so everyone, how many pencils?

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Audience: 5 pencils.

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5 pencils is right.

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And the key is you included the words.

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I tried this lesson
with my 5-year-old niece once.

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After she added pencils and pencils, 
I asked her,

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"What's 4 billion plus 1 billion?"

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And my aunt overheard this 
and she scolded me and said,

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"Are you crazy? She's in kindergarten!

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How's she supposed to know
4 billion plus 1 billion?!"

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(Laughter)

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Undaunted, my niece finishes counting, 
looks up and says:

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"5 billion?"

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And I said:
"That is right, it is 5 billion."

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My aunt just shook her head and laughed

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because she did not expect that
from a 5-year-old.

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But all you have to do
is take a language approach

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and Math becomes intuitive
and easy to understand.

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Then I asked her a question

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that kindergartners 
are definitely not supposed to know:

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"What's one third plus one third?"

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And immediately she answered:
"2 thirds".

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So if you're wondering 
how could she possibly know that

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when she doesn't know about
numerators and denominators yet?

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You see, she wasn't thinking
about numerators and denominators.

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She thought of the problem this way.

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And she used 1 apple + 1 apple
as her analogy

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to understand 1 third plus 1 third.

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So if even a kidergartner 
can add fractions,

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you better believe that 
every 5th grader can do it as well.

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(Applause)

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Just for fun, I asked her 
a high-school algebra question:

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What's 7 x² plus 2 x²?

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And this little 5-year-old girl 
correctly answered,

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9 x².

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And she didn't need any exponent rules
to figure that out.

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So when people say that we are
either hardwired for math or not,

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it's not true.

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Math is a human language,

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so we all have the ability
to understand it.

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(Laughter)

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We need to take a language
approach to math urgently

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because too many kids are lost
and are anxious about math

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and it doesn't have to be that way!

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I worked with an angry,
frustrated high-school student once

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who couldn't pass algebra

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because she only knew 44%
of her multiplication facts.

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I told her,

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"That's like trying to read
and only knowing 44% of the alphabet.

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It's holding you back."

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She couldn't factor or solve equations
and she had no confidence in Math.

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As a result, this teenager
had no confidence in herself.

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I told her, 
"We have to start with multiplication

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because once you know all your facts
by heart, everything gets easier,

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and it'll be like having a fast pass
to every ride of Disneyland."

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(Laughter)

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What do you think?"

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And she said "Ok."

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So she systematically learned
her times tables in 4 weeks

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and yes, even multiplication
has language embedded in it.

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You'd be surprised how many kids
don't realize 7 times 3

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can be spelled out as "seven times" 3, 


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which just means 3 seven times,
just like this.

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So when kids see it this way,

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they quickly realize 
that repeated addition


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is slow and inconvenient,

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so they gladly memorize
that 3 seven times always gives you 21.

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So for this teenager 
who was at risk of dropping out,

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becoming fluent
and confident in multiplication

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was a game changer.

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Because for the first time
she could focus on problem solving

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instead of counting on her fingers.

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I knew she had turned the corner

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when she figured out 
that a 2-year car lease

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at $445 a month 
would cost you $10,680

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and she looked at me disapprovingly
and said:

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"Mr Polisoc, that's expensive!"

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(Laughter)

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At that moment, math was no longer 
causing problems for her,

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but she was using math to solve problems 
as a responsible adult would.

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As an educator, it's my duty
to challenge kids to reach higher,

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so I leave you with this challenge.

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Our country is stuck at 26% proficiency,

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and I challenge you
to push that number higher.

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This is important because mathematical
thinking not only builds young minds,

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but our kids need it to imagine
and build a future that doesn't yet exist.

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Meeting this challenge can be
as simple as apples + apples.

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Insist that we teach Math
as a human language

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and we will get there sooner,
rather than later.

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Thank you!

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(Applause)