Originally Posted by blackcat
Originally Posted by Val
Originally Posted by Nyaanyaa
Oh... but you could take “12% * 20”, or “12/100 * 20”. I think it's important to teach understanding that “percent” means “per hundred” or “division by hundred” instead of just teaching to rewrite. Rewriting can be useful, but it isn't necessary.

It's also useful to know that you can shorten “/100” to “%” in any longer equations. smile

I agree with blackcat; you can't multiply "12% * 20" directly because the two terms have different units. The % sign indicates that the 12 is on a scale that the 20 isn't on.

You need to include a conversion factor first, which you're doing with the fraction, but maybe not realizing that this is what you're doing. (?) The conversion to 12/100 puts the percent on the same scale as the 20.

Thank you for clarifying this, because I feel like I must have fallen into a different dimension!

FWIW, I agree with blackcat and Val too smile