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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Asians rule [/quote]

Between the math competitions, spelling bees, and computer science competitions- Asians are definitely the majority of representation.  Not all wealthy either-putting education as a high priority is cultural.  Wish more families did [/quote]

BUT, we don’t need everyone excelling in math and high tech work.  Most careers don’t involved very advanced math.   But students aiming for a STEM career need to prioritize it.  [/quote]

Elementary students and most middle school students have not settled on a career yet.  The future career is an unknown. (Sure, a tiny number of very very rare exceptions to this might exist.) Yet those are the exact ages where a strong math foundation needs to be established yo even have the option for a STEM degree in college or future STEM career.

Having a solid math foundation is about not closing doors prematurely for students in elementary and middle schools.

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There are plenty of students who know that they have zero interest in  STEM careers, or finance or economics or anything close to that.  By middle school they have a good idea of what classes they enjoy and which classes are miserable grinds.

Every student needs to have a solid math foundation.   Not every student needs to accelerate math or be in advanced classes.  I would hope that the kids who spent their free time at a math school and math summer programs use these skills in a career they enjoy.  [/quote]

Every student doesn’t need discrete math and MVC in high school.  But students with normal IQ and cognitive ability that are college bound should absolutely have calculus by 12th. In most districts, the normal pathway is Alg I in 9th, which isn’t enough IMO.  The most typical advanced path puts students at Alg I in 8th, which isn’t crazy advanced at all, but students might not get enough math in K-5 to get there without supplemental math.  It isn’t that they are dumb- it’s that school literally isn’t preparing them.  It isn’t just about math, it’s about higher level thinking[/quote]

Posters here seem to only think about the same colleges with the big names and the Ivy Leagues.  There are about 3,000 four year colleges in the US. Less than half require 4 years of math.  The only ones that need calculus are students going into STEM or the top colleges and a few scattered reasons.

Math is not the only subject that strengthens higher level thinking.  All subjects do. The problem with students who spend all of their free hours on math tend to be weak in creative thinking, creative writing, they can be weak in the humanities where everything is not black and white like math. They may be weak in memorizing historical events and timelines because they don’t typically have to memorize.  Students weak in math have an easier time because they can almost avoid it with taking the minimum requirements.

A large majority of kids are average and they will have no problem finding a college that fits them.  Average kids who do the work will get good grades in all of the basic maths.  Most kids have a subject they like and are good at, maybe history or English. That will help them find their way into a major they will enjoy and do well in.

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Taking Alg 1 in 8th is not some huge acceleration.  That should be average but our schools are so bad that it isn’t.   Kids wanting to go into STEM at a
Top 20 school are doing more acceleration than that. [/quote]

We have the advanced kids who go to RMS close to the school in Algebra 1.    Everyone else, about 80% take  8th grade math. [/quote]

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