Kuala Lampur, Oct. 24 -- A student sits quietly in a Mathematics classroom, copying formulas from the board. The teacher explains, gives examples and assigns exercises. The student follows every instruction but understands very little. When the examination comes, the formulas are forgotten, the questions seem unfamiliar, and Mathematics becomes another subject to fear.

How many Malaysian children are experiencing this? More importantly, how long will we continue blaming students for poor Mathematics performance without questioning how we teach them? For years, improving Mathematics achievement has been an important educational priority in Malaysia. Yet we often respond to weak performance with more exercises, additional tuition and repea...