Skemp Reading Response

I found this article very interesting and somewhat thought provoking. It made me think of teaching math in a slightly different way and it made me think about how I understand and approach math and how I hope to teach math.
Something that I got from this article is that a relational understanding of mathematics is more of a conceptual and deeper, more lasting understanding whereas instrumental is more of a mechanical understanding, i.e., here is the formula, "monkey see, monkey plug in".
Skemp argues that relational teaching is far superior but wonders why so many math teachers teach in a more instrumental manner, while I feel that both are equally important and that they are inseparable when teaching math. Instrumental teaching/understanding is often a good way to form a foundation from which to build on and leads to a strong relational understanding.
This being said, I believe that relational teaching and understanding should be something to strive for whenever possible. However, this really may be too much for many students, especially in lower grades where math is still a mandatory subject, as it could be a very slow and overwhelming process at times and when in reality, all that is really needed to be known by the student is the given algorithm and when/how to use it.