Babylonian Word Problems

Reading this article has got me to reflect on the word problems today. It was interesting to read that although some word problems in ancient Babylon were practical, others were not. Instead, the impractical ones were used for critical thinking, problem solving, and as a way to extend mathematics into a more abstract, pure, and generalized form. As a math major myself, I am always seeking a good challenge. There is nothing more satisfying than solving a problem that you were stuck on for a long time. Similarly, the ancient Babylonians were probably looking for challenging word problems as well that would push scholars in their education.

Overall, this article makes me think of the praacticality of modern day problems. There are still many modern day problems that have no application and are worded weirdly and poorly. Some of them give quantities that you would never actually find or need in the real world. I can see how these types of questions may push the students who are more interested in abstract math, but it does not help the students who already struggle in math and are finding it hard to enjoy it. Those students are the ones who need to see that math is in our everyday lives. Reflecting back to teaching practices, it is important for teachers to choose questions wisely and know who our "audience" is. The types of questions we assign can either motivate students or demotivate them.