On my way home today I stopped in at a local hair salon to pick up a hair care product that I was running low on. With tax it came to $14.84 and I handed the lady a $50.00 bill (all I had was one five, several ones, and the fifty). She opened the register and was able to count from 84 up to the next dollar, which was 16 cents. Then it got interesting…she would look at the 16¢ in her hand, then the fifty laying there and was trying to count from 15 to 50. I almost told her it would be $35.00 but didn’t want to interrupt her train of thought. Keep in mind this was a hair salon and didn’t have a cash register like you see in stores and tells the cashier how much change to give back to the customer. Finally she says, “I’m drawing a blank here, I’ll do it on the computer”. When the computer told her the difference was $35.16 she was able to give me the correct change. Without the computer she was lost. I might add the woman was middle aged and not a HS girl working after school.
Is making change something that is lost nowadays unless it involves a machine that does the calculation for you? My first part-time job in high school was working at an office supply and stationery store. This was back in the days before Office Depot and Staples and big chain stores. It was a local business owned by a husband and wife team. The husband, a retired Navy man was in charge of the new employees. One of the first things he asked on day one is, “do you know how to make change?” Of course most of the HS students replied no and he would take us one by one to the counter, pull out money from the register and showed us how to make change. Then he would give us the fifty, tell us the bill $31.85 (or any imaginary number) and we must count back aloud as we gave him the correct change. We all learned to make change, quickly, correctly and always counting it back as we handed it to the customer. Once you learn it’s like riding a bike, you never forget.
There’s something to be said about being born in my generation. I learned math without the aid of a calculator, I learned how to type on a typewriter with blank keys and still to this day type without looking at the keyboard. I can make change without the aid of a calculator or computer. I can balance a checkbook. I can do quick calculations in my head. Maybe these are considered useless skills nowadays but I’m still glad I have them. One never knows when they might come in handy.
So true, Elaine. I was explaining to my girls the other day what a typewriter was. How strange it was to think that they would probably NEVER use one or have a need to their whole lives. I think this technological age is wonderful, but there is something wrong when a person cannot do simple math. My own oldest daughter is in 6th grade, and they use calculators. Her teacher had an accident recently, and missed a couple of weeks of class. During that time they had a substitute teacher that happened to be a teacher when I was in school. My daughter said that the substitute told them they could not use calculators, and was griping about the technology keeping them from using their minds. I had to agree. While I think technology is great, I think it is best if kids at least know how to do it in their head, too.
heh
I was a terrible math student–always hated long division.
But I am usually able to do simple figures in my head.
Whether it’s words or numbers, it’s probably good for us any time we have to do our own thinking.
I can’t remember how often I have shown younger cashiers how to make change–just like that ex-Navy man did. I also can’t remember how often I would come up with the change in my head before the cashier did on the register. Yes, technology can be wonderful. But I often question how dependent we are on it and wonder what might happen if it went away. Anyone remember card catalogs in the library? Think of what happens when their computers go down now.
Elaine,
Once we teach kids on how to make change we can then teach them the next skill, balancing a check book and then finally the apex of their training; managing a budget. I believe we have a lot of people that could use retraining in these areas and they are in our banks, our investment firms and finally in our government. If our government can’t find billions of dollars and can’t manage and balance a budget how much of an impact do you believe it has on our youth? These leaders are the people who speak of the importance of role models especially in judging sports figures but can not look in the mirror and hold themselves to the same standards.
“Logic Speaks”
I’m surprised by this article. I was always good at math but even my friends know how to count quickly. Education in Poland covers math learning to last class of a high school. Many of us can count integrals but there’s nobody who finishes even primary school without knowing simple math: addition, subtraction, division or multiplying.
Maybe it’s because of age – we all know grammar but reading Internet forums full of mistakes don’t push us forward with our knowledge.
As someone who used to be a teacher, the education that Americans do not get is heartbreaking to me. It’s not just making change, it’s also reading and being able to write a reasonably articulate sentence.
I’m with you, Elaine. My first job was at a drug store and when I had to give change, I would count out loud starting with the amount of the purchased item up to the amount that the customer handed me.
Never realized what a valuable mental exercise it was.
Julie – how neat that your girls had one of your old teachers! I like that she took away the calculators and made the students do it the old fashioned way.
Cilicious – doing our own thinking certainly has an effect on aging. Use it or lose it I guess.
Mary – I certainly remember card catalogs. I shudder to think what would happen should there ever be a world wide or even our country by itself with a huge computer failure. CHAOS!
Gino – you make a good point…if our government can’t do these things why should people care about their debt?
Zaslony – interesting comments about the educational system in Poland. Reading Internet forums can be entertaining but I agree with you, they don’t do much for our knowledge.
Karen – the US Educational system needs a complete overhaul! Another ‘thing to fix’ on President Elect Obama’s long list.
Janet – yep, you count up to the amount given. I think the lady that was trying to give me change was doing the opposite.
I’m back in town and checking up on everyone. Yes, I grew up in those days as you did. And thankful for it. I don’t know how to text message, and don’t care to learn. I don’t want an Ipod or whatever the thing is. I want to read the old-fashioned way, as I do every single night after my nightly shower. Poor kids these days aren’t going to be able to find their asses with both hands!
Brenda
I agree. These machines are taking the place of the greatest piece of machinery ever: our minds. Hence, the increase of stupers (short as you know for abominably stupid persons)!
Have a lovely Christmas, Elaine!
This post made me smile! My stepfather taught my sister and me how to make change when we were very young, and he used to “test” our knowledge by sending us into stores with a certain amount of money, to purchase one specific thing (of which he already knew the cost), so that we would have to make sure we were given the correct change. He also insisted that we “watch” the register to make sure the cashier was ringing up our purchases properly. To this day I have a very difficult time if the cashier begins scanning my order while I’m still emptying my cart, because I’m not free to watch the prices come up and make sure they are right! I guess those early-ingrained habits die hard.
At any rate, just wanted to stop by and wish you and your loved ones a blessed Christmas, Elaine, and a happy and prosperous 2009! Thank you for your friendship, and for your encouragement as a fellow blogger! God bless!
~Jenny
Merry Christmas Elaine!
I relied heavily on a calculator up until college, and even once I graduated I began forcing myself to work out problems in my head..you get faster pretty quick at it, but both have their strong points
Sending you warm salutations and felicitations for the New Year
I also grew up using manual calculations in school. I might say I am good at it. but I still rely on calculators in calculating even simple calculations. Especially now that we have calculators on our cellphones.
It would be more convenient to use computers in stores as it saves more time. but maybe the lady was just a little preoccupied with something that’s why it took so long for her to count your change. Come to think of it, it’s already a daily task for her. It should have been easy enough for her.