开云体育

Below is an excerpt from an article about the way Virginia is reconsidering both its math instruction and the way it monitors the opportunities offered in lower-income districts.? The previous situation with "math pathways" that discouraged acceleration until 11th. grade, is exactly the same as the one currently in place here in Oregon.? It is based on discredited claims by professor Jo Boaler at Stanford.

"Civil rights leader Bob Moses?referred?to the ability to accelerate in math (i.e. go above grade level) in order to take Algebra in middle school as a civil right. It has been a longstanding?goal?of the?US Department of Education?and civil rights?organizations. Nationally, middle schools that are?not?offering Algebra disproportionately serve lower income and underrepresented minority students.

As?explained?by Stanford University Math Professor, and Director of Undergraduate Math Studies, Brian Conrad:

“A solid grounding in math from high school—which traditionally has included two years of algebra, a year of geometry, and then, for more advanced students, other coursework leading up to calculus [and beyond]—is a prerequisite for a four-year college degree in data science, computer science, economics, and other quantitative fields. Such a degree is, in turn, the price of entry for jobs not only in the sciences and Silicon Valley but also in a number of seemingly distant fields. …

The students who are most reliant upon public schools are the most harmed when districts embrace policies based on superficial appeals to equity or false promises about future job opportunities." .....