2+2=5 - Huh?

"Next to doing the right thing, the most important thing is to let people know you are doing the right thing." 

John D. Rockefeller

I've been thinking about how I typically do things and what those actions produce in my life.

When I was 15 I was doing a series of tests in High School in preparation for the next year's important official exams at 16. I was in Math class and had just finished the big test of 100 questions. I had finished it about 50% faster than anyone else in the class. My teacher noticed that I was finished early and was clearly frustrated by that fact. He called me up to his desk and began to check my answers, after a very uncomfortable silence he began a very long and low pitched rant on the fact that I had only gotten 99 of the 100 questions correct. He then demanded I show him how I had gotten to the incorrect answer. When I had finished writing out the equation he pointed out that if I had done the test "properly" by writing out all of the equations to show "how" I had gotten to the answer I would have gotten a "half" point more in the test! I was astounded! I had just scored 99% in a test and did it 50% faster than anyone else in the class and the teacher was incensed because I had done the test in my head!

I have told that story so many times as an example of how incredibly irrational and unreasonable traditional teaching can seem to non-traditional students.

27 years later I confess I am still getting into trouble for not using the "traditional process" even though I tend to get to the correct answer using nontraditional processes 99% of the time.

I've never been very good at doing things "the right way," nor, indeed, even managing to live my life in accordance to traditional expectations. I still usually reach the correct answers when presented with life's tests, but because I omit the traditional process, I have no back-up for failure. Doing it the "right" way allows the participant to receive half a point for trying. Doing it all in your head, then getting the answer wrong, gets you nothing for trying because you didn't do it the way society says it should be done.

My old Math teacher was seriously frustrated by my unwillingness to do the Math problems the way he taught. I think it might have helped me if he had explained that at some point in life if I was to continue living to my potential I would reach a point where it would be extremely difficult for me to get a 99% score by only doing everything in my head. The equations should become harder as my life progressed, and having the discipline to sit down and write the equations out slowly and properly would help me and others figure out why I got the answer wrong.

I'm 42 years old and I confess I still find it difficult to take the time to write the full equation out and explain how I came to the answer I am presenting as the correct answer.

My issue is still with the fact that getting 99% of the test correct, still doesn't protect me from the world around me being frustrated that I didn't do it the proper way so they could figure out how I came to my conclusions.

It gets much more difficult when I have become the teacher and I still care less how you find the answer as long as the answer is correct.

Process or Product? Style or Substance?

My old Math teacher may have had a point when he wanted me to slowly write out the 100 equations so he could see what it was I did in my head.

I have some things that I am doing right now that I perhaps should take the time to write out fully to allow others to follow how I came to my conclusions.

I just hate the slow pace that forces me to work at..... I wonder what my Math teacher would say if he could read this?