Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
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Whiteboard Eraser/ Calculator Combo

For teachers
  (+3, -1)
(+3, -1)
  [vote for,
against]

I'm currently a sophomore in college. I am tired of sitting in class, waiting for some other lackey in class to punch in the simple 3 digit multiplication into his calculator while the teacher paces back and forth carrying an eraser waiting for an answer to (3.74*8.21).

I propose a whiteboard eraser with a small scientific calculator built into the back side to allow for quick calculations.

bleh, Jun 06 2007

Watchdog http://flare.ucf.ed...tom%20tollbooth.gif
[Jinbish, Jun 07 2007]

Estimation_20Skills [hippo, Jun 08 2007]

[link]






       A little epoxy should create this simple useful thing.
awesomest, Jun 06 2007
  

       agreed, but thats not quite as marketable as i had envisioned. I'm thinking it would be recessed into the foam on the back or the eraser. Why the [-]?
bleh, Jun 06 2007
  

       I think possibly because it's just two widely available items stuck together, despite its possible usefulness. Similar ideas that might not attract buns could include a t-shirt with a clock in it, a mouse-mat with a clock in it, or perhaps a dog, with a clock in it.
theleopard, Jun 07 2007
  

       //perhaps a dog, with a clock in it//   

       Baked. It's called a watchdog.   

       [bleh]: Is it that the teacher doesn't have a calculator and he has to ask someone in the class to provide him with the answer? Lazy bugger!
Jinbish, Jun 07 2007
  

       Heh, fair enough.
theleopard, Jun 07 2007
  

       I'd have a lot more respect for the teacher if they just gave an approximate answer. This would convey the messages that: a) the correct approach to solving a problem is more impotant than the answer itself; and b) being able to approximate the answer before you punch it into a calculator is an important skill.
xaviergisz, Jun 07 2007
  

       Ah, but asking a student to do a calculation is a form of audience interaction - rather than genuinely needing a student to do the maths. Admittedly, it might miss the mark as mode of class engagement...
Jinbish, Jun 07 2007
  

       ...nice name for a band.
xandram, Jun 07 2007
  

       30.7054 - sorry, I've been in a meeting
coprocephalous, Jun 07 2007
  

       //I'd have a lot more respect for the teacher if they just gave an approximate answer. This would convey the messages that: a) the correct approach to solving a problem is more impotant than the answer itself; and b) being able to approximate the answer before you punch it into a calculator is an important skill.//   

       Agreed on both counts, but as i will not be attending a *real* college until fall, i'm stuck with the lazy fools. I've had a few good teachers who either have worked the problem out in advance so they dont have to wait, or will give approximations. Those are my favorite teachers. Alas, I am now stuck with a fool in charge of a chemistry class.   

       //Ah, but asking a student to do a calculation is a form of audience interaction - rather than genuinely needing a student to do the maths. Admittedly, it might miss the mark as mode of class engagement...//   

       also agreed, but I think a more valuable form of engagement is having the class provide the formula, not the answer to the maths.
bleh, Jun 07 2007
  

       //valuable form of engagement is is having the class provide the formula//   

       Absolutely, as long as the teacher/lecturer doesn't use, what I call, "The Assassination" method. One lecturer I used to have would pick on someone to answer a question and then just move to the next person etc. until someone got it.   

       It would be really embarrassing when he got to the 10th-plus person. He would get incredulous and accuse the class of being lazy and/or idiots. He didn't think for a second it could be because of his crap teaching!
Jinbish, Jun 07 2007
  

       //I'd have a lot more respect for the teacher if they just gave an approximate answer //   

       This is useful only if it's followed by the abbreviation "o.w." - something I use constantly and stands for "or whatever."
phundug, Jun 07 2007
  

       We have those digital whiteboards in a lot of the rooms. Most of the teachers just write on them with regular markers. I'm telling you I'm being taught by fools.
bleh, Jun 08 2007
  

       //I'd have a lot more respect for the teacher if they just gave an approximate answer ... being able to approximate the answer before you punch it into a calculator is an important skill// - see link
hippo, Jun 08 2007
  

       I think of that link often, as I practice my estimation skills all the time while others rely on calculators. Its a great idea.
bleh, Jun 08 2007
  
      
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