Why is math handled differently than everything else? If a kid is reading several years above grade level, people applaud it and want to give the kid advanced books to read. Kids who are talented in sports get private coaching and elite travel teams. Kids talented in music progress to concertos while still in middle school. But kids who are talented in math are told to sit through remedial instruction, and that there’s no point in moving forward. |
A common concern raised by equity proponents is that HS students may not be learning Calculus as thoroughly as they should. Instead, statistics is suggested as a better choice since students tend to learn it better in HS. Math educators who support equity efforts argue that postponing Calculus until college could lead to a more proficient learning experience. A big benefit of not allowing calculus enrollment in high school is it immediately addresses the math equity gap that is caused by Calculus students graduating HS with two additional math years compared to those who complete HS with just Algebra 2. |
Statistics is recommended because nearly no one actually learns statistics and no one cares that most scientific research does statistics incorrectly, so it's easy to let people go through the motions of the class and then get on with their life.
The most famous and powerful modern math reformer, Jo Boaler, based her movement on research that was debunked and discredited as statistically invalid. Statistics is not easier than calculus. |
Calculus is taught far too late, not too early.
The roots of calculus are in basic algebra and geometry, s you can see in 3Blue1Brown's Essence of Calculus video. If this would be introduced slowly, earlier, calculus be much more intuitive once it's time for the AP class |
What if the URM kid isn't at the center since their well-meaning parents trusted FCPS' claims that local LIV was the same? Then what? |
I can't help but notice that you skipped my questions. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and ask again: Do you know how to get a distribution given its CDF, or vice versa? Do you know what a moment generating function is? What field is your PhD in? "The books include the proofs and explain the proofs but you can skip that to get to the how to use the method properly." - you can't make this stuff up, can you? |
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You're really determined to make this a "FCPS oppressing URMs" thing, even when it isn't. There are probably only a small handful of kids who meet the CogAT Q and SOL benchmarks, but are at a non participating school. These kids are likely white or Asian kids, and they likely knew that staying at the LLIV rather than attending the center would cost them some opportunities. If, in theory, you had a brilliant URM with a sky high CogAT Q, then the school would be encouraging the parents to send the kid to the center. It's pretty well understood that if your kid is a regular AAP kid, the LLIV and the center will be more or less the same, but if you have an outlier, your kid should attend the center. Why are you assuming that URM parents are dumb and don't know how to advocate for their outlier children? |
There is a whole segment of academic researchers and teachers who have buried their head into equity philosophy, and generate virtue signaling content all over the internet, justifying lower and slower math is better for everyone, including advanced students. But data proves them wrong. HS students that enroll in Calc BC have shown they are more than capable of mastering Calculus than the apparently easier Statistics. |
I found calc far more intuitive than algebra or geometry, and I went straight from pre-calc to BC. |
That's the normal progression, you didn't do anything extra fancy. And fwiw, I also thought calculus was more intuitive than algebra or geometry, since I had a great calculus teacher. My friend, on the other hand, hated calculus, because they had a poor calculus teacher. If all math teachers were great, kids would do better in math classes. |
+1. People keep insisting that kids' brains are "not ready" for Algebra when they're younger, and that they will have gaps in their understanding or struggle in later math classes. If the data actually supported this idea, they might have a point in pushing a slower track. The AP Calc and SOL data pretty convincingly show that the accelerated kids are more than capable of handling their accelerated path. Parents here are very oddly competitive about math level, and it seems like everyone wants the highest available level to be the one that their kid is taking. The parents of kids who didn't qualify for 7th grade Algebra want to restrict other kids from taking it or want to redefine math levels such that their kids are just as smart and capable as the more accelerated kids. The parents of the 7th grade Algebra kids act like it's absurd for anyone to access 6th or even 5th grade Algebra. It makes sense that people don't want their kids to look worse on paper than kids who are more advanced. It's sad, though, to be so petty as to try to hold other kids back just because their own kids aren't ready for more acceleration. |
I know I didn't do anything fancy. It was the normal thing to do when I did it. These days at least on DCUM people seem to freak out at the thought of their kid doing BC without first doing AB, but it may be the same small handful of posters posting repeatedly. |
You and your teachers did a good job learning algebra and geometry to prepare you. |
DP. I am not one of the posters you are referring to since I have not posted that on this thread but I have heard it from knowledgeable, experienced math teachers. The same is true for learning to read, fwiw, some kids are ready young and some kids are ready at the usual time and a few kids late - but generally if you try to teach a child too early, you only frustrate them and yourself. Same for math, although you don't seem to believe that. |