In a recent Education Week survey of about 300 math educators, most agreed that it’s “essential” for students to have fact fluency in order to work on higher-order, conceptual math problems.

All those long multiplication tables. Timed tests and “mad minutes” of worksheet problem-solving. Fluency drills. Somehow, getting kids to know their basic math facts continues to be at the ...

Critics say timed drills aren’t useful and instead provoke math anxiety in many children. The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics urges teachers to “avoid” timed tests. But advocates insist ...