Parents vs progressives
The state of Virginia has proposed to cancel advanced math options for students before eleventh grade to improve equity. The proposal will remove geometry and calculus as requirements and some students say this could leave them feeling unprepared for whatever the future holds. For those who may not know, the word "equity" is now a form of newspeak. It's meaning has been altered to mean an equalization of results. Parents in the affluent region comprising northern Virginia know this. Many of them happen to be liberals. One thing they are not going to sacrifice is the education of their children. Not for any cause!
"[A]s currently planned, this initiative will eliminate ALL math acceleration prior to 11th grade," he said. "That is not an exaggeration, nor does there appear to be any discretion in how local districts implement this. All 6th graders will take Foundational Concepts 6. All 7th graders will take Foundational Concepts 7. All 10th graders will take Essential Concepts 10. Only in 11th and 12th grade is there any opportunity for choice in higher math courses."
Former Trump official and Loudoun parent Ian Prior said this effort will "stifle advancement for gifted students and set them back as they prepare for advanced mathematics in college. This is critical race theory in action and parents should be outraged."
https://townhall.com/tipsheet/leahbarkoukis/2021/04/23/virginia-schools--advanced-math-n2588441
Fortunately, (can we claim victory yet?) the Virginia Education Department appears to be backpedaling now, after announcing plans to overhaul the state's math curriculum, the department's website has been refomented to de-emphasize it's focus on "equity" education after they had made it the centerpiece of their initial plan. VED spokesperson James Lane claims that nothing is final, yet despite that less than reassuring comment, the specific item described as "improve equity in mathematics learning opportunities" is still listed on the VED website.
So is the VED really listening to parents or are they giving them a little false hope as they push through this initiative?
One final question: Would this really give black and brown students a necessary leg up, or would barring students from taking accelerated courses will have the opposite effect?
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I submit: the battle for our children in the era of the left.
Trump and his supporters are off topic
I am off topic.
As usual the best/funniest part of your seeds is reading the comment sections within them. There was a 'great' section of a dozen or so posts as to who would hit the ground first after falling off a building, the black kid or the white kid ... and the winner was ... ?
Mental Health professionals are recognizing that "being off TOPIC is healthy."
I suppose it's better than hurling Molotov cocktails. Good for them.
Without doing any research on this my first thoughts are (remembering my own high school years) some of the math they tried to teach me was over my head. I never did get algebra and still don't.
That said IMO: I don't think that a high school education should demand that every student learn everything every other student learns. If that is inequality well ... I don't believe every human is the same in every aspect. I know I can not do everything that many other humans can do nor am I as smart as some other humans are. I am not their equal in some areas.
IMO: Not everyone can learn everything. Having and expecting a reasonable average of what we know and expect the students to learn and understand to get grades and graduate seems reasonable and very worth while.
However, expecting everyone to learn everything is unrealistic. How I graduated without understanding a damn thing about algebra I don't know and don't care. But, if not understanding algebra would have kept me from getting a highschool diploma I would not have had the opportunities I have had to support myself all my life and may have ended up needing government help.
Again, However, Providing an opportunity in schools for more than the average capabilities of the average student as options to the required curriculum is also well worthwhile as well.
We need people smarter than I am... lol
IMO: This is not a one size fits all world.
Agreed. I don't expect every student to be able to grasp something like calc, god knows it wasn't exactly easy for me, but that does not mean we should deny others the opportunity. Frankly if you are smart enough you should be in classes that reflect that regardless of age or grade.
Same here Steve.
Math is hard, and that's the point. It forces people to think.
Holy shit, we agree on something! Finally a cartoon worth looking at.
I am all about equal opportunity but fuck the idea of equal outcomes.
I notice that the children's heights didn't start out equal neither do children's ability to master subjects not everyone needs or can do advanced math and for those who try and can't understand it are they to be left behind ?
Offer options for advanced classes but don't require advanced math for graduating !
Did you notice that no one can now "see over the fence" due to lowered standards.
Branco gave the message brilliantly on this one
Of Course but the non reality starts where everyone can see over the fence. That is not true.
As I stated before we are actually not all equal to begin with.
IMO: Advanced classes should be offered to everyone but required by no one and advanced classes should not be a requirement for a diploma.
Not everyone's a genius. But those that are can learn more that those who are not. Focus on the students that can handle the advanced classes and they will probably go even further without students that can't handle the advanced classes in the way.
I went back to a community college not long ago . It was easy to see who got it and those who just were along for the ride. Some of those that didn't get it did little more for the rest except to disrupt the class anyway.
I am pretty observant , I looked some of the ones not caring and not getting it were not paying for their own education either. A big reason I am against free college.
Yet another step along the path to the dumbing down of America. It's no wonder so many Americans believe in conspiracy theories and obviously fake news. When we were teenagers in high school, during summer vacation we would mix with the students from Buffalo at Crystal Beach, Ontario, on the north shore of Lake Erie just west of the Niagara River that is the border between Canada and the USA. It was incredible for us to hear the American students bitch about the fact that they only got 97 or 98 on their final exams when others got the gold star mark of 100%, when we Canadians had to struggle to get a 75% honours grade. That was my first lesson in the quality of American education. In our final year of high school it was necessary to pass 9 subjects - English literature, French, HIstory, Chemistry, Physics, Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, and a chosen option. Calculus was a 1st year university subject, We had a standing joke back then that you could take a course in Basket Weaving at the University of Miami, but what isn't a joke is what Bill Mahar said about courses taught NOW in America: "'The Philosophy of Star Trek,'The Sociology of Seinfeld,' and 'Surviving the Coming Zombie Apocalypse'. Now THAT should tell you something.
I got an F in Sociology of Seinfeld ... the zombies ate my homework.
More insanity. Penalizing smarter kids in the name of racism.
What is all this LOCKED on this thread about ?
Makes no sense.
I was wondering the same thing.
That is fucking dumb. If a kid is smart enough to take trig or calc as a freshman then let them. I had finished all my required math classes for graduation by the end of my sophomore year (geometry, algebra 2, trig, and calc). When I was in 6th grade there was one kid who was taking his math classes at the local community college because that was the only place that offered the courses at the level he was at. Don't punish smart kids so dumb kids don't feel as dumb. If anything they should be pouring more resources into nurturing the best among us.
Although, I'm with Steve on this one... don't force those of us that really don't get it to be required to take it to graduate either. I've always been an advocate for helping kids advance their talents; while that's usually not realized until HS, I was pretty good at honing in on my kids' talents a bit earlier, then again, I pay attention.
Neither of my kids are math whizzes. My daughter is a wonderful artist [drawing, painting, piano [self-taught], guitar [self-taught], and any wind instruments], but she is really good at welding, creatively repurposing things / redesigning, using a CNC, minor coding, and thrives in an organized chaotic environment... so she took machine shop and is planning on going to school for HVAC.
My son... we haven't completely figured him out yet. He's at the age that he's full of testosterone, piss and vinegar (almost 13 and going through puberty) and only wants to play video games, but he's passing his classes. While he says he doesn't understand several things... I suspect sometimes that he's trying to get others to do his work for him. I think most kids go through a phase like that in some way. I know I did.
My son is really good at deductive reasoning though. He loved doing the criminal investigation project in Boy Scouts. There's a class geared toward those things in our district, so that may be something that he gets into, detective / criminal investigating. He even loves watching CSI, NCIS, and Law & Order SVU with me. He loves playing Clue and he's really good at it. He loves playing chess, he's okay at it, especially for his age. So, strategy and deductive reasoning are his strong suits.
Point is though... for HVAC and Criminal Investigation, there's no need for calculus or trigonometry; hell, I don't see a need for algebra for either of those really. Geometry is needed in both though.