[bluemetal]

I've been using a slightly different version of that gridding method to multiply numbers since I was in grade 5. Some guy came into school and showed us some "novel math", and it just clicked for me where long multiplication never really had. These days I can do either, but I'm far quicker doing my grids once I learnt how to draw them fast.

If my experience teaches me anything, it's that if these children progressed up through a higher education system similar to what I have, where the people marking your work seem to have some kind of outright fear of the new and different, they're going to take a beating on their grades. At least until it becomes more widely accepted. Would suck to go first.