Frequently the historically motivated path is too long or creates too much baggage.  It's not always the case, granted, and sometimes the historical development does give you the motivation, but you're still asking for a gifted teacher, and that's rare.<p>A gifted teacher can teach with or without the historical perspective, and in my experience a clean, direct presentation <i>with appropriate motivation and context</i> is usually better.<p>Again, not everything works for everyone.