Mental calculation talk

West Wong delivering his talk

West Wong, a mental arithmetic expert in Malaysia, was cordially invited to Sungai Long Campus on 23 March 2019 by UTAR Centre for Extension Education (CEE) and Malaysia Mental Literacy Movement (MMLM) to deliver a talk titled “Unleash Your Calculation Genius”.

Sharing the current educational landscape in Malaysia, he said, “Every corner around the world is actively talking about STEM, which is Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. STEM is very crucial for the development of Malaysia as it could contribute to the nation’s growth for the next twenty years. However, the news reported that the interest in science and maths among Malaysian students are deteriorating. Last year, only 44 percent of Malaysian students were in the STEM stream as compared to 48 percent in 2012. It shows the reduction of around 6,000 students, annually, on average. This could be a problem for Malaysia because we need people who are good in science and mathematics to boost the productivity of our nation. ”

He also talked about education technology, which is known as EdTech, and explained how it could empower students or kids to learn more efficiently and effectively. He also highlighted the power of human brain, saying that there were over billions of neurons inside a human’s brain but it is important to understand how to make use of them. “We have the most powerful asset in the world, which is our brain. Therefore, you should utilise it instead of wasting it. This is one of the movements that MMLM wishes to promote,” he said.

Participants practising the finger calculations under the instruction of West Wong

He mentioned that, according to National Geographic, the first computer built 500 thousand years ago by humankind is an abacus. “Abacus is one of the best tools for people to learn calculation, especially for kids. Kids are like a blank sheet of paper as they are not taught the ways to calculate. Nevertheless, it is still a good exercise for adults to enhance their brain performance.”

He pointed out that practising mental arithmetic using abacus does not guarantee a high calculation accuracy because mental skills and calculation skills are different. “Basically, learning calculation could stimulate our sight, hearing and focus. A person who is good in calculation will have a better focus, a more sensitive hearing and far-sighted,” he explained. He also pointed out the root cause for the deduction of student numbers in the STEM streams, which is low confidence level towards mathematics. Hence, he suggested students to learn from the very basic calculation and upgrade slowly in order to build a growth mindset.

Moreover, he explained the six levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy and shared the essence of STEM and 21^stcentury skills. He said, “We are living in an age where the technology is widely available. In other words, we have more connectivity and powerful devices. The kids should be able to learn better and be more efficient and effective.” He also introduced an EdTech app called SoroTouch to help students train their mental skills to calculate faster. He also encouraged the audience to participate in the Mind Competitions this year, adding that it is one of the competitions that offers a huge sum of money as a prize.

West Wong (seated, centre) with the participants

For more details on Mind Competitions, please visit the MMLM official website at www.utar.edu.my/mmlm.