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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]A good read. https://www.nwea.org/blog/2024/when-are-students-ready-for-algebra/?hl=en-US#:~:text=And%20students%20who%20complete%20Algebra,negative%20consequences%20on%20their%20achievement.[/quote]

"Students needed to score around a 235 to 238 on MAP Growth in the spring of seventh grade to be on track to score proficient at the end of an Algebra 1 course. "

A 50% chance of being only proficient? I assume proficient in this case means passing, not outright mastery. Sounds like a low bar.[/quote]

This was an eye-opener. The author of the article said that of the kids with a 235-238 on the MAP, 50% of those kids could probably handle it, and 50% could struggle with it. He said it would be understandable for a school district to raise the bar and require more preparation and proficiency for Algebra I. Mine has a 245 on MAP in the 6th, and I don't think she's ready to take a high school course that will go on her transcript. Sure, maybe she'll make a high C or a B in 7th grade, but why not give it a year and give her more prep? Go for the A in 8th grade? [/quote]
You do what's appropriate for your kid, even hold back one additional year and go for Alg1 in 9th grade, if that ensures an A on the transcript.  FCPS has already been accommodating the needs of students like yours, but ignoring the needs of advanced students, until now.

Of the approximate 14000 FCPS 6th graders, [b]700 advanced kids' needs are being met by Alg1 program. Why and how does a program meeting the needs of 5% of total 6th grade kids concern you? [/b]
[/quote]

DP.  You should be concerned about the way Alg 1 is being implemented.  If they let any kids, whether ready or not, enroll in the class, then the teacher is going to slow down the class and water down the content to meet the majority of the kids where they are.  While it would be nice to imagine that the teacher will maintain standards and let kids earn poor grades or drop down, the reality is that doing so is a huge administrative hassle for the teacher.   If the class is filled only with kids who truly are ready, then both the kids who weren't ready and won't have to struggle in a class that is too hard for them and the kids who were ready and won't have to deal with a dumbed-down class will benefit.

FWIW, I think it's great that they're expanding access to Alg. I in 6th, but they should be using a higher threshold for entry.  If they don't want to gatekeep the class, then they should provide more detailed information to parents to allow the parents to make a truly informed decision.  [/quote]
This argument doesn't make sense, that only the 6th grade alg1 class has students of mixed abilities, and not in any other 7th, 8th, or 9th grade alg1 classes. If anything, any dumbing down is more likely happening in those upper grades.  [/quote]

In the past, the kids taking Honors Algebra I in 7th needed to complete Math 7 (AAP 6th grade math) and meet the IAAT and SOL pass advanced benchmarks.  Kids taking it in 8th fully completed Math 8 and weren't skipping any content.  Kids in the old system taking it in 6th needed to meet some very high benchmarks, still complete math 7, and then still meet the IAAT and SOL benchmarks to move onto Algebra.  Yes, there would be some degree of mixed ability and preparedness.  IME, teachers are going to teach to the lower side of middle in a class.  The low middle would still have been reasonably ready for Algebra.

This last year is the first one where kids skipped both Math 7 and 8 when moving into Algebra, but they did need high MAP scores to suggest Algebra readiness.  Now, they're removing any and all guardrails.  Kids who were struggling with Math 6 can jump right up into algebra. The low middle will shift from kids ready for Algebra to kids needing significant pre-algebra instruction/remediation.  [/quote]

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