I will defend the clerk to some extent. When the “new math” wave hit the school district where I taught, everything became calculator-based. It was mandatory. No more learning about doing math in your head, making estimates, etc.
Teachers were even forbidden to teach the times tables! An elementary teacher I knew passed out the times tables to her class. Can’t hurt, right? Well, the principal found out and ordered her to collect all those times tables. Students are not to have times tables. They distract from the calculator.
Most teachers try, they really do. But they are now lead by administrators who are woke, vindictive, and incompetent. (Really bad combo, there.)
Wow, isn’t it awful!?
You raise a very good point. My point was how bad math education has gotten (not to pick on that kid). You explained the root cause well.
My sister taught math to middle- and high-school kids for over 40 years and retired a year ago. She was old school and taught math drill, memorization, times table, etc. She forbade calculators to force mental math. Her classes were consistently rated at the top. She had to fight the administration and do enough of their useless crap to keep them at bay, but she stuck to her guns.