"Do you believe in art people?" "Do you believe in science people?" "Do you believe in writing people?" Of course there are "math people". To suggest otherwise is ridiculous, and continues the misleading and often false trend that everything that can be understood about a person can be gleaned from an fMRI. The more I learn about neuroscience (and I know a lot, to be fair), the more I hate the field of neuroscience. It is ruining humanity. That some people are gifted at math is self-evident. That pretty much everyone can perform adequately at arithmetic with practice is also self-evident, just as someone can learn to draw a cat with practice, even if they're not a gifted visual artist. What we're advocating here ("visual learning" at the expense of practice) is going to possibly uplift mediocre math students at the expense of the truly gifted, who need to learn things like algebra and geometry when they're young in order to do real math when they're older. Sure it's frustrating for people who don't like practicing a subject that they lack interest in, but there's no way to learn algebra without drilling it. It's like suggesting that the best way to learn a sport is to only scrimmage against other opponents. That's of course false. You need to practice, practice, and practice certain skills (say, shooting uncontested three pointers for an hour a day). Without drilling, nothing becomes second nature, and without that type of mental "muscle memory", one can never be expected to, say, solve a complex differential equation. I think there's been a trend of dumbing down education by catering to the mediocre for a few decades now, and sadly, it appears to be accelerating. Article like this, that denigrate both math and humanity, make me sad for the future. Edit: I should qualify my statement. I despise behavioral neuroscience and "neuropsychology". They are behaviorism masquerading as something legit, when it should have been debunked decades ago. New language. New tools. Old ideas.
I was looking at it from a learning perspective. To believe in art people, math people, creative people, in the sense that you are one, or aren't in the special club, can limit a person's potential. Sure, there are people that are better with art, math, and tend toward creativity, but isn't that a result of learning over time through efforts directed in the given subject? I know a neuroscientist very well that would likely agree with me. :)
Do you perhaps mean "Why not believing in them closes doors of opportunity"? Edit: After finally getting some sleep, I see what you mean, sorry!
No, I was trying to express that by believing some folks are "math people" is a fixed and limited view of life. Anyone, short of some traumatic brain injury, or severe cognitive impairment can learn to be good with math and recognize where math can improve his/her life. I apologize for being unclear.
I agree, people limit themselves when they develop a distaste for math, or claim that they're predisposed to performing poorly at it. Math serves as a great tool for sharpening the mind. There are many other skill sets worth pursuing, but math is one of my favorites.
I've always just kind of believed that people have the potential to be good at any subject but their way of getting their just might be different. I'm personally very good at math but if somebody asks me to explain my thought process for coming to an answer they can expect to be very confused. I come up with weird ways of doing things for almost every subject because it's the only way I learn. Granted this might only apply to people with learning disabilities as I have dyslexia so I guess my brain works differently. I really do think it's just about finding what works for every kid though. I wrote very good essays in high school without ever actually receiving help for dyslexia because I figured out tricks that helped me. When it comes to writing informally or handwriting something quickly however I tend to fumble. Still haven't found what works for that, but I'm sure there is something.
You mind if I share your post with my middle schoolers? The efforts you describe are admirable. I'm currently trying to convince a few more at a time that with concerted efforts in the right direction, they can learn to do most anything. I'm swimming upstream right now against a current of parents with the, "I was never a math person, so I figure that (insert sons/daughters name here) isn't also." approach to mathematics.