| advertise add site services publishers database health videos | ![]() | about toolbar stats live show health store more stuff JOIN/LOGIN |
"Times table" redirects here. For a table of departure and arrival times, see Timetable. In mathematics, a multiplication table (sometimes, less formally, a times table) is a mathematical table used to define a multiplication operation for an algebraic system. The decimal multiplication table was traditionally taught as an essential part of elementary arithmetic around the world, as it lays the foundation for arithmetic operations with our base-ten numbers. Many educators believe it is necessary to memorize the table up to 9 × 9. In countries using the Imperial system of measurement, such as the United States, it is often considered helpful to memorize the table up to 12 × 12. The times tables were invented by the Chinese.[citation needed]
[edit] In abstract algebraMultiplication tables can also define binary operations on groups, fields, rings, and other algebraic systems. In such contexts they can be called Cayley tables. For an example, see octonion. [edit] Standards-based mathematics reform in the USAIn 1989, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) developed new standards which were based on the belief that all students should learn higher-order thinking skills, and which recommended reduced emphasis on the teaching of traditional methods that relied on rote memorization, such as multiplication tables. Widely adopted texts such as Investigations in Numbers, Data, and Space (widely known as TERC after its producer, Technical Education Research Centers) omitted aids such as multiplication tables in early editions. It is thought by many[who?] that electronic calculators have made it unnecessary or counter-productive to invest time in memorizing the multiplication table. NCTM made it clear in their 2006 Focal Points that basic mathematics facts must be learned, though there is no consensus on whether rote memorization is the best method. [edit] See also[edit] External links
|
| ↑ top of page ↑ | about thumbshots |