The outbreak of the pandemic has caused an exponential increase in parents choosing online education and homeschooling. This new trend has paved the way for introducing abacus-based teaching systems to teach mathematics to young children.
Beginning with the pros and cons of using an abacus, we will answer every question related to the Abacus.
The Abacus, one of the oldest calculating tools in the world, is making a comeback. After centuries of being overlooked and replaced by more modern alternatives like calculators, the Abacus is gaining traction again as a tool for teaching basic math skills. In this blog, we’ll explore the pros and cons of using an abacus and examine why it remains an essential tool for basic calculations today.
What are the Pros & Cons of using an Abacus to Teach Kids math?
Abacus: A Brief Introduction
Abacuses have been around for centuries and are still used by many for simple arithmetic calculations. Before exploring the advantages and disadvantages of using an abacus, it’s imperative to understand its components and mechanism. It’s a classic calculator crafted from beads and rods that has endured through generations.
The Abacus has been around for centuries, dating back to 300 BC. Its predecessor, the Salamis tablet, was used by the Babylonians and is considered a precursor of modern abacuses.
Abacuses have significantly progressed, swapping wood and pebbles for metal rods, frames, and beads. This evolution was accentuated by the Chinese Suanpan, a modern version of the Abacus used worldwide today.
This simple yet powerful Chinese invention, the Abacus, has been around for centuries and has spread across multiple countries. From its birthplace in China, it made its way to Taiwan, Japan, India, and now even the United States and several European nations. Many students are learning this traditional calculation tool today!
Abacus is a valuable learning aid for primary schools, teaching children math fundamentals like counting, addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. It helps kids easily comprehend the concept of place values and how to represent more significant numbers.
Pros of Using an Abacus
1. Learning Mental Math Quickly
Mental math can significantly benefit children as it helps build their confidence in mathematics & it also serves them well for higher-level exams like the SAT and college entrance tests. It’s a practical ability that lets individuals solve mathematical calculations without a calculator.
In Japan, a person’s ability to calculate efficiently is considered the most crucial factor when hiring staff. Therefore, young adults and children are encouraged to take regular abacus lessons from an early age to improve their job prospects.
Abacus training can give you the power to calculate big numbers in your head within minutes. This will enable you to do complex calculations in your brain quickly, thus saving you precious time during examinations. Working with an abacus can help you master the art of mental math and make complicated calculations a breeze!
2. Teaching Counting Abacus Learning Effectively
Abacus is an effective and efficient way to teach counting and math basics to children. You can introduce this tool as early in their childhood as you want. Letting the kids become familiar with the counting device before you begin your process will give them a head start.
Kids love colorful beads because they can easily recognize their patterns. You can use one bead in the first row, two beads in the second row, three beads in the third row, and so on – this helps them understand the foundation of numbers.
An abacus is an excellent tool for teaching numbers to young children. With the correct usage, it can prove highly beneficial in developing a child’s numerical skills.
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3. Abacus Users Become Intuitive and Creative
Kids use the left side of their brains to decipher noises and recognize the language. However, the right side can make them more intuitive and help increase their critical thinking skills. This makes them sensitive and more aware of their surroundings.
Working on an abacus requires you to use both hands simultaneously. Research has suggested that shifting beads activate both sides of the brain, helping to strengthen neural pathways.
Abacus use can sharpen a child’s intuition & imagination, as well as improve their visualization skills. Hence, it is an excellent way to nurture young minds in the early stages of development.
Using an abacus during schooling enhances children’s brain development, which can reflect their creative abilities and school results.
4. Reduces Symptoms of Alzheimer's Disease, Dementia, and Dyslexia
Extensive research has demonstrated that the Abacus can be instrumental in alleviating symptoms of impairments related to memory &cognitive functions.
Practicing the Abacus regularly can minimize the chances of Alzheimer’s, dementia, and dyslexia. Likewise, if someone is already struggling with such issues, using an abacus could help alleviate the associated symptoms.
Not only does the calculator help increase your photographic memory, but adults can learn the Abacus too! It’s an excellent tool for children and older generations to hone their mental math abilities.
5. Makes Math Fun.
Honestly, children don’t necessitate a scientifically proven benefit to having fun. An abacus is an excellent way to entertain and teach them valuable skills.
Kids aged 3 to 10 need to learn basic arithmetic operations such as counting, addition, and multiplication. Sometimes, these elements are part of the school syllabus, and students can quickly become disengaged or bored with this type of education.
Using an abacus can make math enjoyable for young kids and alleviate their concerns. It will give them the confidence to take on more challenging math problems and even explore possible career opportunities in mathematics.
Japanese Adults are Relearning the Abacus to Improve their Mental Arithmetic and Business Skills.
To know more about why Japanese Adults are Relearning the Abacus
1. Not Suitable for Advanced Mathematical Calculation
An abacus is an incredible tool for performing calculations involving one figure or more. However, there are specific issues that need help to be overcome.
Ancient calculators were mainly used for basic arithmetic operations, such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. With some extra training, one could even discover how to compute square and cube roots. But what new functions could be added after that?
The Abacus is excellent for teaching basic math skills and tackling middle school arithmetic. However, when high school curricula become more complex, the Abacus needs to catch up and may not be helpful anymore.
2. Not Portable
With familiarity with the finger abacus or mental math, you can use a calculator during an exam. The Abacus is a much larger device than modern calculators, & it’s not feasible to carry it around with you all the time for calculating sums during exams or other occasions.
The primary disadvantages of using an abacus are its inability to carry it around easily and its complex usability.
3. Time-Taking and Lengthy Counting Process
The abacus calculator was a revolutionary invention around a thousand years ago. It allowed people to carry out mathematical operations quickly and accurately, helping them with daily calculations.
A modern calculator accomplishes math tasks almost instantaneously, but an abacus is significantly slower. This makes it far less efficient than other modern-day computational devices.
Although an abacus can be incredibly useful for calculations, those needing experience can find it difficult and time-consuming. This makes it a clear disadvantage to those not trained in finger abacus or mental math.
4. The Calculating Methods are Confusing
Different people use the Abacus in various ways when performing mathematical operations. There is no specific way to calculate on an abacus, as some move beads from left to right while others use the reverse direction. Nonetheless, this illustrates how flexible the instrument can be.
Due to its complicated nature, using the Abacus can be overwhelming for younger children or those new to it. This is one of the main drawbacks of this tool.
FAQs
1. Does the Abacus confuse kids?
It depends on the circumstances. Young kids might find it challenging to learn the Abacus independently without any guidance, but with the help of an experienced teacher, chances of confusion are significantly reduced.
Incorporating an abacus into your learning routine can have a lot of positive results. Not only can it boost your cognitive development, but it also leads to enhancements in critical thinking, creativity, and intuition. Using an abacus regularly makes you more math-savvy and proficient in mental math calculations.
2. What are the disadvantages of using an abacus?
The traditional Abacus is not equipped to handle advanced arithmetic. It’s much slower than its modern counterpart. However, one should not look down upon its use solely for calculations as it can be used as an effective tool to hone your mental math skills and speed up your ability to calculate.
Conclusion
Although an abacus is excellent for counting, it could be better for complex calculations. That’s why many have chosen to rely on modern calculators instead – they are more time and cost-efficient and equally capable of handling advanced mathematics.
Abacus users know all the advantages of using an abacus – training the memory, doing mental math, and more. So don’t worry about its usefulness; try to receive numerous perks.
