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Reply to "Is algebra necessary for ALL?"

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[quote=Anonymous]I don't think requiring algebra forces anyone to pursue a STEM field when they'd be happier in the humanities. I DO think it's important to keep kids' options open as long as possible, and requiring Algebra does that.

Look -- in middle school, I had a hard time composing paragraphs, never mind an intelligible essay. But I was good at math, & the guidance counselor told my mom not to worry b/c I'd grow up & be an engineer who didn't have to write. In high school, I was a math geek, but I also had English and history teachers who helped me learn how to write. In college, I majored in English. Today I'm a copy-editor, and I joke that if copyediting didn't exist, I'd have to invent it, b/c it's a perfect fit for my skills/personality. If the adults in my life had let my teenage skills & interests determine my career path, I'd be miserable today.

I'm not saying no kid has ever dropped out of school b/c of algebra -- but I'm sure the same could be said of many other requirements. Do we just abolish requirements? No. We give kids the support they need to meet them, so they eventually can choose careers on the basis of what they -really want- to do, not on the basis of what they did or didn't study when they were 14.
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