 Even the controversial NCTM Standards of 1989 did not call for abandoning standard algorithms, but instead recommended a decreased emphasis on complex paper-and-pencil computation drills and greater attention to mental computation, estimation skills, thinking strategies for mastering basic facts and conceptual understanding of arithmetic operations.During the peak of the controversy in the 1990s, unfavorable terminology for reform mathematics appeared in press and web articles, including "Where's the math?