California will no longer require eighth-graders to take algebra — a move that is line with the Common Core standards being adopted by most states, but that may leave students unprepared for college.
Last month, California formally shifted to the Common Core mathematics standards, which recommend that students delay taking algebra if they aren’t ready for it. Previously, algebra class was a requirement for all eighth-graders in the state.
The Common Core State Standards Initiative, which is sponsored by the National Governor’s Association, is an effort to unify diverse state education curricula. Forty-five other states and the District of Columbia
have signed on so far.
But some education experts worry that the change will further damage struggling students’ college chances, since early proficiency in Algebra I is an excellent predictor of college graduation, according to the Mercury News.
Black and Latino students in California are significantly more likely to fail eighth-grade algebra, and 80 percent of those who fail it once will fail it again when they take it in high school.
A study published by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area claims that some minority students who score well enough to place into advanced math classes are often mistakenly held back.
“School districts have been disproportionately requiring minority students to repeat Algebra I even after they scored proficient or advanced on the Algebra I California standardized tests,” said Kimberly Thomas Rapp, executive director of the committee, in an interview with The Daily Caller News Foundation.
The new standard is a step back for California, and may leave students, particularly minority and low-income students, unprepared for college, said Rapp.
“Back in ‘97 when the state went to a standard that expected students to take Algebra 1 in the eighth grade, that was really about looking forward to college competitiveness and preparing our public school students to be ready to compete to access college systems after high school,” she said. “The reality is what we’re now doing is lowering the standards.”
Instead, Rapp proposed that California schools improve the mathematics curriculum for students in the fifth, sixth and seventh grades, so that they are better prepared for Algebra I in eighth grade.
The Council of Chief State School Officers, which set the Common Core standards, did not respond to a request for comment.
AWD says:
Blacks and Latinos can’t pass math, so better to drop Algebra and make everyone more stupid.
For fuck sake, better to be a stupid loser than to be politically incorrect.
And so you have the logarithmic and exponential problem of why we’re turning into a also-ran country while Asians wipe us out.
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9th February 2013 at 10:03 am
taxSlave says:
Support the Seperation of School and State.
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9th February 2013 at 10:18 am
fool on the hill says:
LOGARITHM ?????
And I thought THAT was a Catholic birth control scheme..
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9th February 2013 at 10:18 am
taxSlave says:
Fuck I can’t spell! I went to public skool.
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9th February 2013 at 10:18 am
taxSlave says:
Fool – the Catholic Church has approved a birth control pill – A Saint Joseph’s aspirin held between the knees.
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9th February 2013 at 10:20 am
AWD says:
Socialism reduces humans to the lowest common denominator (a math term). Everyone is equally poor, equally powerless, equally ignorant and dumbed down. Democrats, liberals and Unions have made great strides in this endeavor. Forward!
Students can now be punished for thought crimes!
7-year-old playing an imaginary game at school gets suspended for real
LOVELAND, Colo. — A 2nd grader has been suspended from school in Loveland for a make believe game he was playing.
The 7-year-old says he was trying to save the world. But school administrators say he broke a key rule during his pretend play.
“I was trying to save people and I just can’t believe I got dispended,” says Alex Evans, who doesn’t understand his suspension any better than he can pronounce it.
“It’s called ‘rescue the world,’” he says.
He was playing a game during recess at Loveland’s Mary Blair Elementary School and threw an imaginary grenade into a box with pretend evil forces inside.
“I pretended the box, there’s something shaking in it, and I go ‘pshhh.’”
The boy didn’t throw anything real or make any threats against anyone. He explains he was pretending to be the hero. “So nothing can get out and destroy the world.”
But his imaginary play broke the school’s real rules. The school lists “absolutes” designed to keep a safe environment. The list includes absolutely no fighting, real or imaginary; no weapons, real or imaginary.
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9th February 2013 at 10:32 am
AWD says:
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9th February 2013 at 10:33 am
sangell says:
Whites are a minority in California public schools. The old 1960′s Civil Right era language and excuses just don’t work anymore in 21st century America.
As a practical matter have the schools ever considered just dropping the name algebra, geometry and such and just call it math class. I remember in junior high being told how hard those classes were by old kids and that intimidated them. Samething with physics or chemistry. Call it science class and label it by Freshman math and science, Sophomore math and science etc.
I’ve heard it said that those who don’t do well in algebra often never really mastered fractions so it might be a good idea to introduce algebraic concepts at the same time kids are taught fractions. Put an A and B instead of a number in a numerator and denominator so kids get familiar with letters instead of numbers in math class and don’t let kids fall behind. Require them to attend summer school if they don’t seem to be ‘getting it’ because math builds on itself and once you have fallen behind you are lost.
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9th February 2013 at 10:51 am
AWD says:
No need to teach Algebra, but make sure the kids learn how to construct communist flags for a new communist country. And whatever else liberal progressives think are important.
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9th February 2013 at 10:54 am
OF says:
…. and in Asia they are introducing Algebra in pre-school (plus a fifth language)….
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9th February 2013 at 11:02 am
Stucky says:
“As a practical matter have the schools ever considered just dropping the name algebra, geometry and such and just call it math class.” ——— sangell
Well, excuse me, but that’s just totally ridicules. Christ. Even “math” can sound scary. Why not take it a step further and call algebra the Numbers and Letters class. We can call trigonometry the Shit You’ll Never Use class. Seriously, relabeling something sounds so governmentish.
Then again, I once dated Cindy Spigner. She said she wouldn’t suck my dick because she was a “good Catholic girl”. Dick?? I told her it was a lollipop. Worked like a charm.
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9th February 2013 at 12:53 pm
IndenturedServant says:
Aw fuck it! I think it’s a great idea if it prevents one child from taking on debt to go to college. Starve the beast!
I_S
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9th February 2013 at 1:25 pm
Eddie says:
After child number one, we learned to make our kids take algebra in summer school so they could concentrate on that one course,get the homework done, and get it over with. The school guidance counselors were always dead set against this, but we ignored their advice and it worked nicely with kids two, three, and four.
Some people have the math gene and some don’t. My wife does, I do not. Only one of the kids really does. I struggled with math in high school and college and only made it through 18 hours of college math before I threw in the towel.
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9th February 2013 at 2:08 pm
The Golden Ruin | Daily Pundit says:
[...] Math Is Hard [...]
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9th February 2013 at 4:30 pm
DL. says:
So. My daughter is dumb because she has trouble with math? Oh, BTW, she passed Japanese…
My son is smart because he’s good in math but couldn’t use grammar worth a damned (almost flunked SAT writing section…)
People. Please. Cut the crap. And also BTW, I nearly flunked HS algebra. Taught myself before beginning college (at age 25)…and am now a certified HS math teacher…go figure.
Okay, okay…some young folks are just late bloomers. Since when is that a sin?
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9th February 2013 at 1:29 am
eugend66 says:
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9th February 2013 at 4:40 am
sensetti says:
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9th February 2013 at 9:40 am