Harvard is not alone. UC students Without 8th Grade Math Skills Skyrockets

[Anonymous]

https://www.newsweek.com/students-ucsd-without-8th-grade-math-skills-skyrockets-11030373

18% UC students placed below Algebra 1.

Among the students not meeting middle school math levels:
42% had taken precalculus or calculus. And 25% of these students had a math GPA of 4.0 in high school.


Takeaway is that you can't trust high school GPA.
4.0 in Calculus can't pass Algebra. Something is going on.

[Anonymous]

“ 4.0 in Calculus can't pass Algebra” is not supported by what you demonstrated. You can have a 4.0 in mathematics and have never taken calculus.

[Anonymous]

this is why they need to bring back testing

[Anonymous]

Isn't it good that they are catching this and students can learn math properly? Some high schools don't have good math teachers. Not everyone is able to go to good public/private schools with good teaching. Also, the fact that numbers have tripled in recent years probably has to do with covid, online learning, and just bad math teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:“ 4.0 in Calculus can't pass Algebra” is not supported by what you demonstrated. You can have a 4.0 in mathematics and have never taken calculus.

These are students who has taken precal or calculus. Some of them have 4.0 math gpa. It's highly unlikely none of these have taken Calculus. Even assuming these are all precal 4.0, the point stands. You can't trust high school GPA.

[Anonymous]

1 in 8 incoming freshman have math skills that fall below an 8th-grade level.
In 2016, UCSD designed a course (Math 2) designed to teach Grade 9-11 math before those students could go on to other remedial math courses. By 2024 the demand for this course had exploded so much that they split it into two courses: Math 2 would now teach Grades 1-8 math, and a new course, Math 3B, would be the same as the old Math 2.
Students were placed into these courses based on test results. In 2020, 36 were placed in Math 2. In 2024, over 900 were placed into either Math 2 or Math 3B.
In 2024, of the students in Math 2 (remember, for students below an 8th-grade level), a significant number (20%) had already taken calculus in high school, and a similar number (25%) scored a 4.0 average in their high school math courses. The upshot of this is that there’s very little way to tell just how behind someone will be based on their high school performance.
Obviously, the students who pass through these super-remedial math courses have much higher fail/withdraw rates once they finally make it to their normal calculus sequence.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:this is why they need to bring back testing

6% can't do algebra math in 2020. This year the percentage tripled to 18%. Thanks to test blind.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Isn't it good that they are catching this and students can learn math properly? Some high schools don't have good math teachers. Not everyone is able to go to good public/private schools with good teaching. Also, the fact that numbers have tripled in recent years probably has to do with covid, online learning, and just bad math teachers.

+1 Yes, it is good that they are addressing this. What is the alternative no admission for any kids from crappy elementary through high schools that they have zero choice in?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:this is why they need to bring back testing

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Isn't it good that they are catching this and students can learn math properly? Some high schools don't have good math teachers. Not everyone is able to go to good public/private schools with good teaching. Also, the fact that numbers have tripled in recent years probably has to do with covid, online learning, and just bad math teachers.

+1 Yes, it is good that they are addressing this. What is the alternative no admission for any kids from crappy elementary through high schools that they have zero choice in?

+100 The mission of the UC schools is to educate California kids, and they're doing a great job. UCs have been test blind, and I don't think they're ever going to back to tests. It's working fine for them, and they're willing to remediate kids who need help. I think that's great.

[Anonymous]

The dirty little secret of the UC's is that they select a certain percentage from each high school, whether that high school is an overperforming one in Palo Alto or Irvine or an underperforming one in LAUSD.

Prior to tests being banned, the average SAT scores were low, below 1300 at most campuses.

Now that SATs are banned, the equity drive has seen the UC system oversubscribed with low performing students.

Hopefully these students can get the remediation they deserve so they can thrive in more difficult classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://www.newsweek.com/students-ucsd-without-8th-grade-math-skills-skyrockets-11030373

18% UC students placed below Algebra 1.

Among the students not meeting middle school math levels:
42% had taken precalculus or calculus. And 25% of these students had a math GPA of 4.0 in high school.


Takeaway is that you can't trust high school GPA.
4.0 in Calculus can't pass Algebra. Something is going on.

GPA and course titles have become unreliable predictors of readiness.

4.0 math gpa in high school yet can't pass middle school placement?

High schools are not teaching kids anymore. How did they get through high school math to get 4.0?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The dirty little secret of the UC's is that they select a certain percentage from each high school, whether that high school is an overperforming one in Palo Alto or Irvine or an underperforming one in LAUSD.

Prior to tests being banned, the average SAT scores were low, below 1300 at most campuses.

Now that SATs are banned, the equity drive has seen the UC system oversubscribed with low performing students.

Hopefully these students can get the remediation they deserve so they can thrive in more difficult classes.

I’m confused. This isn’t a dirty secret but what most public university systems do. Look at conservative Texas, The UT and A&M system have exactly this and they find ways to make it work. If you want uber competitive only rich white/asian colleges, there’s many top privates to choose from.

[Anonymous]

I’m sure their PIQs about adversity were outstanding though!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:“ 4.0 in Calculus can't pass Algebra” is not supported by what you demonstrated. You can have a 4.0 in mathematics and have never taken calculus.

Only about 30% of high school students take calculus.

People here are obsessed with math but there are many degrees that don’t require calculus. Different skills for different majors.