LCPS Math placement for 5th graders, rising 6th graders

[Anonymous]

LCPS teachers will recommend students to take testing to see if they are eligible to take prealgebra in 6th grade.
Any parent can request to be in this testing regardless of recommendation, and can opt out of the testing. They can also decline prealgebra in 6th grade if they qualify.

Students who get at least 90% on the mock SOL7 will be eligible for algebra. It is not clear if they are automatically eligible for algebra or if they are only eligible to take the IAAT test.
For students who score below 90%, parents can appeal to their principal and the gifted coordinator to have their child take algebra in 6th grade.
You can also appeal if you score below 82% to have your child take prealgebra in 6th grade.

Students who do not take prealgebra in 6th grade and instead Foundations of Algebra, can still be recommended to take algebra in 7th grade.

[Anonymous]

This isn’t news, it’s been true for the last two 5th grade classes, this upcoming group will be the 3rd.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:LCPS teachers will recommend students to take testing to see if they are eligible to take prealgebra in 6th grade.
Any parent can request to be in this testing regardless of recommendation, and can opt out of the testing. They can also decline prealgebra in 6th grade if they qualify.

Students who get at least 90% on the mock SOL7 will be eligible for algebra. It is not clear if they are automatically eligible for algebra or if they are only eligible to take the IAAT test.
For students who score below 90%, parents can appeal to their principal and the gifted coordinator to have their child take algebra in 6th grade.
You can also appeal if you score below 82% to have your child take prealgebra in 6th grade.

Students who do not take prealgebra in 6th grade and instead Foundations of Algebra, can still be recommended to take algebra in 7th grade.

Just to clarify. Recommended/requested fifth graders take a mock SOL7. If they score 90% or above, they are eligible for 6th grade algebra consideration. If they score 82%-90%, they are eligible for 6th grade prealgebra consideration. Below 82%, they take Foundations of Algebra or Math 6? How do they decide whether a student takes Foundations of Algebra or Math 6?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:LCPS teachers will recommend students to take testing to see if they are eligible to take prealgebra in 6th grade.
Any parent can request to be in this testing regardless of recommendation, and can opt out of the testing. They can also decline prealgebra in 6th grade if they qualify.

Students who get at least 90% on the mock SOL7 will be eligible for algebra. It is not clear if they are automatically eligible for algebra or if they are only eligible to take the IAAT test.
For students who score below 90%, parents can appeal to their principal and the gifted coordinator to have their child take algebra in 6th grade.
You can also appeal if you score below 82% to have your child take prealgebra in 6th grade.

Students who do not take prealgebra in 6th grade and instead Foundations of Algebra, can still be recommended to take algebra in 7th grade.

Just to clarify. Recommended/requested fifth graders take a mock SOL7. If they score 90% or above, they are eligible for 6th grade algebra consideration. If they score 82%-90%, they are eligible for 6th grade prealgebra consideration. Below 82%, they take Foundations of Algebra or Math 6? How do they decide whether a student takes Foundations of Algebra or Math 6?

Sorry. PP here. I meant to ask for clarification. Is the above a correction representation of what OP said?

[Anonymous]

Foundations vs Math 6 is just teacher rec based on grades and ability. Just to put it into perspective, 90-95% will go into those two. A few will go into pre-algebra and 0-1 will go into Algebra. The pre algebra and algebra ones will be the super gifted types, not just the I get all A’s in math kids. Even most identified gifted kids will go into foundations. They have intentionally changed how they do it - too many kids were running out of math in 10th grade.

[Anonymous]

Why have both prealgebra and Foundations of Algebra? If a kid can go to Algebra 1 in 7th from either class, it seems like both are providing prealgebra skills. Does prealgebra cover additional material or is it the same material as Foundations but it goes deeper into the topics?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why have both prealgebra and Foundations of Algebra? If a kid can go to Algebra 1 in 7th from either class, it seems like both are providing prealgebra skills. Does prealgebra cover additional material or is it the same material as Foundations but it goes deeper into the topics?

Good question. Perhaps they are similar classes with prealgebra being an honors prealgebra, as it is a new course. It used to be about half the kids would be in algebra by 7th grade, and it is still somewhat close to that now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why have both prealgebra and Foundations of Algebra? If a kid can go to Algebra 1 in 7th from either class, it seems like both are providing prealgebra skills. Does prealgebra cover additional material or is it the same material as Foundations but it goes deeper into the topics?

Most kids will go from Foundations to pre Algebra. Very few will skip Pre and go straight to Algebra but it’s possible. Foundations takes the Math7 SOL at the end of the year, pre Algebra takes the Math8 SOL at the end of the year.

The new honors track for standard honors kids is:

6th - Foundations
7th - Pre Algebra
8th - Algebra 1
9th - Geometry

To do something more accelerated than the above now requires additional hoops. In my daughters MS this year there about ten 6th graders total taking pre Algebra and none taking Algebra 1. They made it much harder to accelerate more than 1 year (which is the above standard honors track.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why have both prealgebra and Foundations of Algebra? If a kid can go to Algebra 1 in 7th from either class, it seems like both are providing prealgebra skills. Does prealgebra cover additional material or is it the same material as Foundations but it goes deeper into the topics?

Good question. Perhaps they are similar classes with prealgebra being an honors prealgebra, as it is a new course. It used to be about half the kids would be in algebra by 7th grade, and it is still somewhat close to that now.

Fewer are in 7th grade Algebra than used to be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: They have intentionally changed how they do it - too many kids were running out of math in 10th grade.

LCPS was also dealing with kids who moved too fast too soon and didn't have a good enough understanding of the early material to do well in the upper levels. Some kids on the fast track had to slow down and/or repeat classes because they couldn't keep up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why have both prealgebra and Foundations of Algebra? If a kid can go to Algebra 1 in 7th from either class, it seems like both are providing prealgebra skills. Does prealgebra cover additional material or is it the same material as Foundations but it goes deeper into the topics?

Most kids will go from Foundations to pre Algebra. Very few will skip Pre and go straight to Algebra but it’s possible. Foundations takes the Math7 SOL at the end of the year, pre Algebra takes the Math8 SOL at the end of the year.

The new honors track for standard honors kids is:

6th - Foundations
7th - Pre Algebra
8th - Algebra 1
9th - Geometry

To do something more accelerated than the above now requires additional hoops. In my daughters MS this year there about ten 6th graders total taking pre Algebra and none taking Algebra 1. They made it much harder to accelerate more than 1 year (which is the above standard honors track.)

Same in my middle school last year, but the number of 7th graders in algebra is much higher.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: They have intentionally changed how they do it - too many kids were running out of math in 10th grade.

LCPS was also dealing with kids who moved too fast too soon and didn't have a good enough understanding of the early material to do well in the upper levels. Some kids on the fast track had to slow down and/or repeat classes because they couldn't keep up.

They slowed it down because of VMPI, then they sped it up a little after Youngkin cancelled it. Now they are requiring testing for prealgebra, where before that would have been teacher's recommendation.

[Anonymous]

There really is just no reason for most kids, even most smart kids, to go beyond Calculus AB in high school. Very very few majors need a math class higher than that in college, and the kids pursuing those majors still have plenty of opportunities to get there. They are really just trying to avoid the kids taking A/B in 10th, B/C in 11th and then...??? Its just not neccessary to be that far ahead. Its a race to nowhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why have both prealgebra and Foundations of Algebra? If a kid can go to Algebra 1 in 7th from either class, it seems like both are providing prealgebra skills. Does prealgebra cover additional material or is it the same material as Foundations but it goes deeper into the topics?

Good question. Perhaps they are similar classes with prealgebra being an honors prealgebra, as it is a new course. It used to be about half the kids would be in algebra by 7th grade, and it is still somewhat close to that now.

Fewer are in 7th grade Algebra than used to be.

Yes. If you look at SOL data, it shows that 28% of 7th graders took the Algebra 1 SOL last year; prior year it was 39%. Similarly, 28% of 8th graders took the Algebra 1 SOL last year; prior year it was 36%.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why have both prealgebra and Foundations of Algebra? If a kid can go to Algebra 1 in 7th from either class, it seems like both are providing prealgebra skills. Does prealgebra cover additional material or is it the same material as Foundations but it goes deeper into the topics?

Good question. Perhaps they are similar classes with prealgebra being an honors prealgebra, as it is a new course. It used to be about half the kids would be in algebra by 7th grade, and it is still somewhat close to that now.

Fewer are in 7th grade Algebra than used to be.

Yes. If you look at SOL data, it shows that 28% of 7th graders took the Algebra 1 SOL last year; prior year it was 39%. Similarly, 28% of 8th graders took the Algebra 1 SOL last year; prior year it was 36%.

And it will be even less this year.