Several weeks ago, I started tutoring a man to help get him ready to take his GED.  He married an American woman and moved here from the South Pacific.  He is very eager to learn and works hard on the lessons.  It’s a pleasure to help him out.  We have one of our weekly sessions at a picnic table on the Rockland public landing. 

This experience is teaching me some interesting things.  The English/American language is much easier to speak and write than it is to teach to someone who has no idea how it works.  My student really wants to learn so he often asks “why is that” about the way things are written.  Often, my only answer is: “I have no idea.  It’s just the way we do it.” A lame reply at best.  He looks at me and smiles, and we both sit there wondering why some things in English make no sense. 

Years ago when I was in school learning all the rules about English language and all the English language that didn’t follow the rules, I never asked “why.” I was a student and the teacher was the teacher. There was no questioning.  While it probably wouldn’t have done me any favors in school, I can’t help but think that if I had asked “why” more often back then, I might be able to explain things better at the picnic table each week, now.  It’s crazy.

Reading is really a challenge to teach because of all the variables in how people write nonfiction and the differences between informational writing: documentary styles, casual styles … the list goes on.  Now math is a completely different situation.  At least that’s what I thought.  Two and two are four no matter what language you know.  We’re blasting right through the basics of math.  He’s like a dog on a bone and doing great.  When we work with problems, understanding the question sometimes screws up the progress, but we both press forward. 

Since things are going so well in math, I’m looking ahead to the future chapters and arrive at algebra and geometry.  We’ve got a problem.  Actually, I have a problem.  It’s been years since I learned that stuff and I don’t know that I’ve used it hardly ever.  I learned to ride a bicycle before I learned algebra, but I’ve ridden a bicycle much more than I’ve used algebra so the bike riding has stayed with me much better than the algebra.

Here’s the bottom line: If you want to get a GED, you have to know the value of X.  Mr. Sims was my high school math teacher and he was an excellent teacher and person.  Math was always interesting to me so together we found the value of X time and time again.  We did it week after week.  As a matter of fact, I was one of the best at finding the value of X.  I never asked Mr. Sims why we were finding the value of X and what we would do with it after we found it.  Together we just kept solving formulas to find the value of X.

Geometry was another subject that I did well in.  All that area-circumference stuff.  We had to memorize formulas and pi or pie ∏ or however you type that funny little symbol.  We had no choice but to memorize because it was 50 years ago.  I’ve used geometry just a little more than I have algebra, but there is no way on this planet that if you gave me a geometry problem or asked me to solve an algebra problem today that I could do it.

So, I’m thinking that our education system could use an overhaul.  Today, despite my excellent geometry grades in high school if for some bizarre reason I needed to know the area or circumference of a circle, I’d Google it.  They would give me the formula and I would have the answer.  Knowing where to find answers seems like a much better use of education than expecting people to remember stuff that they may never use in their life.  For someone who wants the equivalent of a high school diploma, is it really all that critical that they memorize all sorts of information that they may never use or is it better to show them the principle and then where to find the formulas they need to make things happen?

Which brings me back to X.  We both know that we’re going to have to learn how to find X.  When we get to that section, he’s going to ask “why.”  I’m going to reply that I don’t have any idea why, but he will need to do that to pass this out-of-date test in order to get a GED.

We could use some help.  We’re a month or so away from this section, but if you know the value of X and would be willing to share, we both would appreciate it.  He’s working hard and I’m sure he’ll pass the test.  Until you look at the English language and algebra and ask “why” you can’t imagine how difficult it is to learn, understand and teach what we take for granted.

Bill Packard lives in Union and is the founder of BPackard.com.  He is a speaker, author, small business coach and consultant.