I teach a class where high school students show up early to ask questions. I have to make them leave when class is over. They actually ask for more homework.

Teenagers don't dislike math and science. They dislike math and science -classes-. Most teens (and most adults, for that matter) have had limited access to real scientific inquiry and no experience with the real world of mathematics.

I'm not a great teacher, and I don't know any answers to the math and science conundrum, but I've been very encouraged by my classes. I don't call it a math or science course. It's about building computer games. The students absolutely love video games, and they're thrilled about the prospect of building their own.

I'm teaching them some computer programming, but (don't tell them) that's just the glue. As an example, it's pretty easy to make a game element follow the mouse, or move directly in the X or Y axis, but soon enough a student asks how to move an object in an arbitrary direction at an arbitrary speed (they don't usually use the word 'arbitrary' until I teach it to them...) I have them try to make an object move 5 units at 14 degrees, and they usually fail.

I encourage them to fail. They don't get enough of that.

Once they've learned that their previous conception is not enough to solve the problem, they ask for tricks. I cave in eventually, and show them a way to do it. In this particular example, the solution involves vector projection. The solution touches upon trig, algebra, Greek history, and even a little linear algebra.

(dx = r * cos(theta) and dy = r * sin(theta) if you're playing along at home.)

They ask for these formulas, they care about where they come from, and they literally can't wait to try writing them into their own programs. When they've got this idea, they feel empowered. They now know a secret, and they can do things they couldn't do before. The next time they see a problem like this, they'll have a better idea how to solve it.

Math isn't supposed to be about problems. It's about solutions. It's not about putting more barriers in your way. Textbooks are full of problems you have to plow through, rather than solutions that make you more powerful.

I took all those math classes, and I couldn't have cared less. It was stupid. When I asked my math teachers when I'd need some of that stuff, they gave me vague nonsense about working for NASA and finding the area under a curve.

So far I've never encountered

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