KCET Gets $1 Million for ‘Math Smart’

Public-television station KCET-TV Channel 28 has received a $1-million grant from the National Science Foundation to produce a one-hour mathematics special.

The grant will allow the station to begin production on “Math Smart,” a $1.6-million program designed to encourage parents to help with their children’s mathematics education. KCET must still raise the rest of the money.

“We (parents) will never claim to not know how to read, but we will all say, ‘I don’t know math,’ and we all laugh about it,” said David Crippens, KCET’s senior vice president for educational enterprises. “That gives the message to the child, ‘Why do I need math?’ ”

Crippens said that “Math Smart,” which is designed to be shown in prime time, will be produced as a variety show. Segments will include humorous vignettes, animation and documentary sections showing real parents as they try to encourage their children to appreciate math.

There will be segments showing the importance of math to everyday life, such as balancing a checkbook or designing a building project, as well as some review of basic math concepts, Crippens said. The program will also discuss the importance of mathematics in an increasingly technical work world.

“Math Smart” will be produced by KCET in cooperation with the American Assn. for the Advancement of Science, the University of California, Berkeley’s Family Math program and the School of Education at Cal State Dominguez Hills.

The program is tentatively planned to air nationally on public television in the fall of 1993.