DebateMath Podcast Debate 50 - Is There Fake Math?
5 snips
Mar 12, 2026 
Kim Montague, former teacher and instructional coach who builds curriculum and trains teachers. Pam Harris, founder of Math is Figureoutable and ex-high school teacher who leads PD. They debate whether rote procedures count as math, question labels like "fake math," and explore real-world problems, procedural fluency, and what it means to truly ‘‘math’’ in classrooms.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Adult Shift From Math Anxiety To Confidence
- Pam Harris shares workshop moments where adult participants declared “I'm not a math person” until shown nonrote tasks that revealed they could do real math.
- Those quick classroom experiences turned anxiety into hope and shifted identities instantly.
Math Is Mental Actions Not Just Algorithms
- Pam defines the distinction as mental actions: mimicking procedures versus reasoning, sense-making, and 'logicking' through problems.
- She argues algorithms are historic achievements but poor teaching tools when taught as rote steps.
Words Can Close Doors Not Open Them
- Kim warns that labeling algorithms or teachers as doing 'fake math' can alienate well-intentioned educators and close the door to change.
- Careful language matters because defensiveness blocks professional growth.