Reply to If they accelerated math, did you regret it later?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Yep.  My kid is in APS.  Did Intensified Algebra 1 in 7th, Intensified Geometry in 8th, Intensified Algebra II/Trig in 9th, and then we demoted her to regular Pre-calc in 10th (rather than Intensified Pre-calc) and Calc AB in 11th.  She's taking AP Stats now -- many of the kids she was on the same track with are now taking Multivariable Calc (and took Calc BC in 11th instead of AB).  She was pulled into the higher math classes in 6th grade because of a perfect SOL score, and I wholly regret that decision.  It's been many years of stress for all of us and she now thinks she "isn't good at math" because she couldn't pull As in the advanced classes.[/quote]
Why are you assuming that she wouldn't have struggled just as much with the higher math if she took it a year later?  Also, why are you assuming that she would think she is "good at math" if she can see that a lot of other kids are on a higher math track?

Some kids are the types who didn't really understand pre-algebra and needed more foundational math.  But others understood things perfectly, and then struggled with greater abstractions and higher level thinking when reaching algebra II.  Waiting a year isn't a guarantee that your kid will sail through higher math classes with no struggles.

Likewise, some kids are the types who feel like they're not good at math if they struggle on the highest track.  But other kids feel like they aren't good at math even if they're getting As, simply because they know they aren't on the highest track.

There is no easy answer.  [/quote]
There is an easy answer but nobody likes it: Stop pushing and stressing kids out with layers and layers of tests, and hire qualified teachers to teach them interesting things so that they develop a love for the subject while working at their own pace![/quote]

How would that be equitable? The goal today is to ensure all kids get the same outcome so working at their own pace isn't going to happen.[/quote]
Getting to the same outcome is scientifically impossible because every brain is wired to work and learn at its own individual pace. That doesn't mean that teachers cannot try to challenge everyone as best they can, i.e giving everyone an equal opportunity to learn. For example, if student 1 is bored, the teacher would give them a more difficult assignment, while if student 2 needs help the teacher works with them to figure out where they are stuck, etc.

Learning is optimized for everyone because they are working at their own level. [/quote]

Which school is your kid in? Teachers in our school won’t even care what they teach, what students learn. They come to school just for a pay. They let bored students sit in the back of  classroom and do whatever they want to do, as long as they keep quiet. My kid math teacher is a runner. She might be a good athlete but not a good teacher. [/quote]

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