"It is a student's understanding of mathematics, above all other subjects, which suffers most from unenlightened teaching methods. ...the troubles may well stem mainly from the first year or two of the child's encounter with numbers... if children come to fear them or to be bored with them, they will eventually join the ranks of the present majority... If, on the other hand, numbers are made a... source of adventure and exploration from the beginning, there is a good chance that the level of numeracy in society can be raised... There is a real role here for the history of mathematics—and the history of number in particular—for history emphasizes the diversity of approaches and methods which are possible and frees us from the straitjacket of contemporary fashions in mathematics education. It is, at the same time, interesting and stimulating in its own right."