In short, I agree that automatization of facts is important, however I advocate for understanding before automatization.
There is no question that basic skills are fundamentally important for doing math. However, I do not personally believe that these skills should be taught through traditional rote learning methods. They reason I believe this is because neuroscience tell us that when we learn something by understanding it first (as opposed to memorizing it), we make stronger neural connections which allow us to more effectively and efficiently access and use that information later. By understanding something deeply, we are better able to apply what we have learned to other situations. For example, we can solve novel or non-routine problems and we are more apt to use our knowledge in real-world applications. This is missing in math today.... kids have no idea why they learn certain things because they do not understand how concepts apply to the world around them.
Although repeated practice and rote memorization works for some people who are able to attach meaning later, this is not the case for the majority of learners. Most people who memorize facts first forget much of what they have learned after a given period of time. As such my opinion is that students should learn the desired mathematical procedures and algorithms conceptually first, then work on the automatization of these concepts after that. This will lead to more students who can understand and do math.... and maybe even more students who like it?
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