Roasting Old Chestnuts 3

Here are some aspects of numeracy that someone deemed relevant in yesteryear. How such conclusions were arrived at is now largely a matter of speculation.

Perhaps many reading this, have had experience of the 'unitary method':

Could a problem like this be updated and utilised in today's mathematics classrooms?

Similarly, could arguments be found to include 'the double rule of three' within the new curriculum. Anyway, how powerful a tool is this notion?

Or consider this - 'division in compound proportion':

Could 'good practice' be built on this?

Or this - in approximations:

It might shed some light on curriculum planning today if we knew how the curriculum of yesteryear was decided upon. Did the curriculum planners have criteria which helped them decide what was in and what was to be left out?

For that matter, perhaps the curriculum planners of today might like to say how they arrived at the present mathematics curriculum.

How was the present balance achieved? Who arrived at these conclusions?

Next month, a final look back on school days and the mathematics attempted.

On to Roasting Chesnuts IV .
For the previous articles, see Roasting Chestnuts and More Old Chestnuts .