Why are Americans so bad at math?

Abstract

It's become common for Americans to laughingly say oh well, I am no good at math so my child is not either. Could you imagine anyone saying those words about reading? Deborah Ball, a member of a White House panel on improving math instruction and dean of the U-M School of Education, talks about how Americans as a society got so far behind in math and what we need to do to get back to where we need to be. Why is it important to be proficient at math and how can we get there? Ball explains why.