<p>I think not every kid is ready for Algebra in 8th grade and no amount of laws will change that fact. My daughter struggles horribly with math. She struggled to get a C+ in Algebra in 9th grade and if she had to take it in 8th grade she would have probably failed. How would that have helped anyone? </p>
<p>People seem to think earlier and earlier requirements and more and more homework makes kids smarter. I think it is harmful. What is the rush? Why does it matter if the average student learns algebra in 8th or 9th grade? If a student excels at math and is interested in it, then of course they should take it earlier. No matter what, everyone can’t excel at STEM. People should get a good all around education, and then be free to dig deeper in the areas where they are interested/excel. And I don’t think a good, all around education has to include calculus in high school, so I don’t think there’s any rush to have algebra in 8th grade.</p>