<p>[California</a> abandons algebra requirement for eighth-graders - San Jose Mercury News](<a href=“California abandons algebra requirement for eighth-graders – The Mercury News”>California abandons algebra requirement for eighth-graders – The Mercury News)</p>
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<p>Goodness.</p>
<p>10 char</p>
<p>In the “good old days” a generation ago when I was in high school, algebra 1 was normally a 9th grade course; only about 10% of the students took it in 8th grade.</p>
<p>That said, with better K-7 math education, it would not be unreasonable to expect most 8th graders to take algebra 1 (with some more advanced). However, getting to “better K-7 math education” is the hard part.</p>
<p>I have a complete set of NCTM-compliant math textbooks from the early 1990s and they run from K-8. Algebra presumably followed.</p>
<p>I think that I took Algebra in 8th grade as I took calc in 11th grade. I was in a school district that tracked but you could jump to another track if warranted.</p>
<p>US Math education was moving in a strange direction in the late 1990s and I stopped following it at that point - didn’t want any part of that movement.</p>
<p>Waiting for BlueBayou’s take! ;)</p>
<p>Mine is that, when facing the consistent ability to recruit and train the teachers who can/could TEACH the harder subjects, the path of least resistance becomes to lower the standard and pass them to the next level. A level where failure is easier to bury as it has become the norm versus the exception.</p>
<p>If you took calculus in 11th grade, you probably took algebra 1 in 7th grade, unless you took summer courses or attended a school that offered accelerated math (i.e. what is normally 4 years of high school math in 3 years). The usual sequence is:</p>
<p>algebra 1
geometry
algebra 2
trigonometry / precalculus
calculus</p>
<p>So someone who starts algebra 1 in 8th grade reaches calculus in 12th grade. Someone who starts algebra 1 in 9th grade reaches calculus as a freshman in college.</p>
<p>Different kids need different paces. DS1 took Algerbra1 as a 7th grader and did fine. DS2 took Algebra1 in 9th grade and he benefitted from Pre Algebra in 7th grade and what was called Algebra 8 as an 8th grader. This class was basically a slow place Algebra class that helped him when he did take Algebra 1. We are in California DS 2 is a senior now - our district didn’t start pushing all kids take Algebra 1 in 8th grade until the year after he was in 8th grade.</p>
<p>Happykid was barely ready for Akgebra 1 in 9th grade, had she been forced to try it in 8th it would have been an absolute disaster.</p>
<p>It doesn’t mean schools can’t offer advanced tracks. In SC the goal is for all students to be ready for Algebra in 9th grade. You can spend your entire middle school time basically taking pre-algrebra. My Ds middle school offered multiple tracks, the top offered Algebra 1 in 7th and geometry in 8th (with both Ds did). This are considered HS courses and included in HS transcript and GPA (and parents are warned about this ahead of time). Then top students took Algebra 2, pre-calc, AP stats and AP calc.</p>
<p>I think there is a developmental element to learning algebra and up and some kids benefit from spending more time getting the basics in middle school before trying algebra…especially here where it counts as HS credit.</p>
<p>I think the fear in CA is that while it doesn’t mean they Can’t offer advanced tracks…but that eventually they Won’t, because they will be teaching to what will be on the new test (alternate course) and because of funding. Totally agree that some kids are developmentally ready and some are not. Would love for all kids to have options.
UCB’s comment on getting a better K-7 math education is the hard part is SO true…</p>
<p>Is marijuana legal already in California?</p>
<p>I was never ready to take algebra, but had to take it of course. I don’t think it benefited me in any way so why require it at all?</p>
<p>Apparently, this requirement was short-lived, dating from 2011, and was in response to NCLB:</p>
<p>[Algebra</a> 1 to be required for all 8th-graders - SFGate](<a href=“Algebra 1 to be required for all 8th-graders”>Algebra 1 to be required for all 8th-graders)</p>
<p>An article on the ending of the requirement, which suggests that the baseline 8th grade course will have “some” algebra 1 and be similar to other states’ standards:</p>
<p>[California</a> abandons algebra requirement for eighth-graders - San Jose Mercury News](<a href=“California abandons algebra requirement for eighth-graders – The Mercury News”>California abandons algebra requirement for eighth-graders – The Mercury News)</p>
<p>I’m curious how the education curriculum would change if we were to discount the history behind it and design it based on our needs today and the technology available to deliver them. Is there any reason why statistics shouldn’t get a higher priority, than, say Calculus for average kid in HS who isn’t necessarily going in the math/engg track? Should kids learn more in information systems than learning how to prove a squared plus b squared equals c squared? Is learning about Bismarck more important than learning about Afghanistan?</p>
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<p>Huh? Why?</p>
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But the former is not as much fun as the latter, IMHO.</p>
<p>Maybe I belong to the “old” generation. When DS took Geometry, I suggested him to learn it in the “old-school” way, by learning some “intellectually satisfying” proof. In algebra or trig, I would be not happy if he only learns how to look up and applies the boxed formula and does not know how these formula are derived. Sometimes I would not insist he could prove or derive everything. I would at least make sure h could follow t least some proof (I would ften select some interesting ones) or the derivation of some formula.</p>
<p>Am I too old-schooled?</p>
<p>When DS was in high school, one of the required classes was computer applications or information systems. It seems it is a very boring class. Fortunately, he could take a computer programming class instead of that class.</p>
<p>I would look at this as a lowering of standards. While I can imagine some children, with good preparation, would not be able to do algebra in 8th grade, I would really think that would be few - with the appropriate courses leading up to it. In NJ many graduate HS without knowing how to figure out percentages, which is not even algebra. I don’t think that they were too slow to learn, just suffered from a poor education. While most of us don’t use algebra or geometry, let alone trig or calc in our lives, this is stuff to grow the brain, and as such is appropriate for education. No wonder our country is behind in math.</p>
<p>Pushing kids to take classes earlier than their brain development is ready for helps NO ONE. Sure, some kids are ready for Algebra in 8th grade, most are not. This push to force kids to take classes earlier and earlier is just going to backfire, and already is when kids don’t really learn the information and are expected to use it later.</p>
<p>Schools need to go back to tracked education, offering various levels of classwork to meet the needs of all students. This “everyone is the same” mentality is crushing our educational system. Forcing kids to do work they are not capable of doing is very damaging, but equally so is holding kids back. The tracks need to allow for movement as some times something clicks with a child and they need to start moving at a faster pace.</p>
<p>Dad<em>of</em>3–it isn’t just about learning that a squared plus b squared equals c squared, it’s about opening up connections in the brain so the understanding of other concepts can happen. When you get into higher levels, if you never understood that A+B=C, proving a squared plus b squared equals c squared can’t happen.</p>
<p>Think back to your 8th grade math class and how easy/difficult it was for you. How long do you think it would take you NOW to get through that book and at what level of proficiency? I was never a strong math student but after helping the kids through school, I’m fairly confident that I could get through an 8th grade algebra book in a couple weeks and ace it, why, because I just know more now.</p>
<p>I don’t see the problem.</p>
<p>If we do well in 6th grade math we get put in pre algebra in 7, Algebra 1 in, alg 2 in 9, geo in 10, trig and pre calc in 11 and calc in 12. There are plenty of kids not ready for algebra 1 in 8 so they do it in 9, meet up with the others for geo in 10, then take alg 2 in 11 and trig in 12.</p>
<p>They’re a little behind but are still ahead of the kids taking basic math each year. It didn’t say they can’t offer it to advanced kids, just that it won’t be required by them all.</p>
<p>Sent from my DROID BIONIC using CC</p>
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<p>I was in the slow math track and I’m pretty sure that I didn’t take Algebra in the 7th grade because I had a remarkable Algebra 1 teacher in the eigth grade that got me into doing math puzzles. I bought a few textbooks and studied Algebra 2 and Trig on my own.</p>
<p>Today, there are myriad options for acceleration.</p>
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<p>A lot of the modern work world is modeled on mathematics. I’d guess that most workers don’t need to understand how the work world is modeled but it does give you an advantage should you want to move up to a job where you do need to know how that works.</p>
<p>Another reason to learn math is so that you can understand how math can model the physical world or virtual environments. There’s a beauty in how a lot of physical things in the world are orderly.</p>
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<p>Yes, you are.</p>
<p>But so am I.</p>
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<p>I’d recommend discrete mathematics before programming courses.</p>