MLC feedback

Back to MLC memo


Date: Wed, 12 Nov 1997 17:05:29 -0800
From: Kirby Urner 
To: synergetics-l@teleport.com
Subject: Syn-l: Feedback from MLC

Got a call from the Math Learning Center guy Bob San Soucie today.
He said my materials were really interesting to him as a mathematician
but clearly way too advanced for MLC's target audience.  

I explained my purpose in sharing advanced materials was to give 
a sense of what we'd be preparing kids to comprehend, that my talk
at the Math Summit, for example, was pitched to an MLC-relevant 
level, with 5th grade teachers in the audience starting to talk 
the lingo by the end of the hour.

But of course he'd already formulated his message.  He explained
that MLC already has a huge investment in printed materials and no
one at the center could see how my brand of geometry could possibly
fit -- the idea of looking ahead a couple years, to some big changes,
obviously didn't seem worth contemplating, given the inertia in 
the math juggernaut -- nothing on the horizon suggests any threat
to the status quo.  

I said I completely understood -- they couldn't switch tracks based 
on some guy walking in out of the blue and handing them a bunch of 
papers, however colorful and math savvy.  He said I put it very well.  

I offered that my strategy was to work on the demand side, to try to 
get students somewhat pumped about this stuff, so that MLC would see 
there was a market for it and move to respond.  He sounded happy with 
this, as that sounded like a completely improbable way to go i.e. MLC 
is in no danger of needing to contact me in future -- but of course 
he was friendly enough (as was I) and said he'd file my materials, 
and my offer to serve as an ally, and get back to me (on some cold
day in hell).

I'm not really clear whether he knows my memo to MLC is on the web
(certainly I shared this info with MLC, so probably he does). I'll 
keep it there of course.  I want the record to show that I played a 
strong game, regardless of the eventual outcome (I say checkmate is 
just a few moves away, but then as one of the players I'm hardly 
unbiased).

Kirby
4D Solutions

Cite: http://www.teleport.com/~pdx4d/mlc.html

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Kirby T. Urner  http://www.teleport.com/~pdx4d/kirby.html
4D Solutions    http://www.teleport.com/~pdx4d/  [PGP OK]
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