I am NOT implying that there is a racial component to IQ or math achievement. It is an immoral, and, more importantly, UNPROVEABLE PROPOSITION. Anyone (and I doubt there are many persons on this list) who wants to assert there is such a link can come on down to Dallas, where I will first buy you a beer at the Old Monk. I will then proceed to entertain any argument you may have, disassemble it, and shove it up your arse - rhetorically, of course ;-)
But I digress....
What I was proposing has to do with the affect of language on perception. My proposotion goes like this:
1. Language is essentially a process for manipulating symbols (words) that represent our reality.
2. Different languages represent reality in different ways.
3. How we learn to represent reality will in turn affect our perception of reality.
4. Mathematics is also a process for manipulating symbols that represent reality.
5. How humans learn to represent reality through language (which comes first developmentally) will affect our ability to represent reality through mathematics.
Even if my proposition is true (which is far from certain), this language effect would certainly be less important than opportunity to and quality of education. But it might have some import such as helping people designing curriculum.
So, Im hoping someone has some insight into this proposition. If you don't care to post it, please meet me at the Old Monk for a beer.
Adam
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