Posted on 07/22/2017 5:15:30 PM PDT by grundle
The chancellor of the California community college system has stated that institutions algebra requirements are the biggest barrier for underemployed or unemployed Americans, and as such is a civil rights issue.
According to NPR, Chancellor Eloy Ortiz Oakley is among a growing number of educators who view intermediate algebra as an obstacle to students obtaining their credentials particularly in fields that require no higher level math skills.
In an interview with the chancellor, NPRs Robert Siegel pointed out the low graduation rate in the community college system (48% for an associates degree), and then asked Oakley if ditching algebra wasnt just the easy way out.
Oakley retorted I hear that a lot and unfortunately nothing could be farther from the truth. Somewhere along the lines, since the 1950s, we decided that the only measure of a students ability to reason or to do some sort of quantitative measure is algebra.
What were saying is we want as rigorous a course as possible to determine a students ability to succeed, but it should be relevant to their course of study. There are other math courses that we could introduce that tell us a lot more about our students.
From the interview:
[Q]: Bob Moses , the civil rights activist, started the Algebra Project, teaching concepts of algebra to black students in the South. He saw the teaching of math as a continuation of the civil rights struggle.
Rates of failure in algebra are higher for minority groups than they are for white students. Why do you think that is? Do you think a different curriculum would have less disparate results by ethnic or racial group?
[A]: First of all, weve seen in the data from many of the pilots across the country that are using alternative math pathways that are just as rigorous as an algebra course weve seen much greater success for students because many of these students can relate to these different kinds of math depending on which program of study theyre in. They can see how it works in their daily life and how its going to work in their career.
[Q]: Do you risk a negative form of tracking? Depriving a student of the possibility of saying in community college: Wow, that quadratic equation is the most interesting thing Ive ever seen. I think Im going to do more stuff like this.
[A]: Were certainly not saying that were going to commit students to lower levels of math or different kinds of math. What were saying is we want more students to have math skills that allow them to keep moving forward. We want to build bridges between the kinds of math pathways were talking about that will allow them to continue into STEM majors. We dont want to limit students.
The last thing Id say is that we are already tracking students. We are already relegating students to a life of below livable wage standards. So weve already done so, whether intentionally or unintentionally.
Heres a good debate on the merits of taking algebra, and this site provides good examples of when you use algebra
and dont even realize it.
LOL!!!
Hell, let’s just drop ALL requirements for graduation. If you can sit in the student union every day and converse with other people that should be enough. And please note this would not lower the intelligence or the knowledge of most of the population. If a student wants to take a class that should be their choice but no required classes, no minimum number of credits, no attendance records, nothing to graducate. Just pay the fees and you get the diploma in 2 or 4 years. Simple. Incidentally my undergraduate degree is Mathematics.
No matter how hard they try, this circle cannot be squared.
“When I was in high school”...
Seriously. Everyone made it through algebra II. EVERYONE.
There is one purpose behind education, and that is to develop a good BS Detector.
Without a solid foundation in mathematics it will be easy to get suckered into making bad decisions because you won’t be able to filter out the BS that salespeople throw out at you.
Its an excellent filter for a reasonable level of intelligence.
Which is why they dislike it.
Not a perfect filter, none is.
Anyone who is going to be any use at troubleshooting technical problems can do algebra. If they are having trouble its almost always due to lousy preparation.
Can be fixed with a bit of diligence.
Algebra is, or used to be, a high school course.
That must be one heckuva real “high achiever” college.
Let’s make everybody stupid. The dumbing down of America.
Absolutely! Algebra is a terrific way to train your brain to think clearly.
Ever calculated the cost of something at a discount in your head? That’s algebra.
It has to do with reasoning skill and recognizing solving problems with using logic. You’ve been using those skills ever since you learned them.
Next thing ya know, they’ll be dropping the gozinta’s! Dumbing down the young populace!
minority students are often motivated to become pop musicians or pro sports players or sell mary kay cosmetics. many of them later in life end up at a trade interview embarrassed by their lack of math skills and passed over for jobs above minimum wage level. while they are students they claim they don’t need math for their chosen but unrealistic goals.
teachers that claim algebra is not needed are often politically correct and math phobic. removing math from requirements mignt affect other classes such as physics and might result in a general dumbing down of those subject curricula.
it seems to me that liberals have a fundamental lack of understanding of compound interest. compound interest understanding is essential to buying a car or a home. it is also essential for investments and retirement planning. yet the liberals vote. algebra is helpful if not necessary for learning compound interest.
I thought algebra was a graduation requirement for high school. WTF?
Seriously, the schools I went to you had to be in algebra 1 by 9th grade.
I hate to be that guy but: if you can’t solve an algebra 1 problem you can’t graduate college (and probably HS too).
This.
We use the skills we learned doing algebra every day without even realizing it.
It’s true that a large portion of the American people are incapable of working algebra problems because algebra requires “critical thinking,” which the schools all say they stress.
The trades require a lot of math. Plumbing: Calculating pipe lengths and bends. Electrician: Calculation loads and sizing requirements for circuits. Carpenter: Calculate the length of a rafter knowing the roof angle. The trades are full of math. You can’t go around all your life letting someone else figure this stuff out for you.
Sorry one more thought. This guy says:
“We want to build bridges between the kinds of math pathways were talking about that will allow them to continue into STEM majors. “
A STEM major who can’t do algebra?? Huh? Like what?
HA! My son is bi-racial and has a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from university. He LOVES calc, geometry, trig, etc. He’s going for his Masters in Mathematics.
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