Reply to What are the new TJ feeders

Forum Index » Advanced Academic Programs (AAP)

Reply to "What are the new TJ feeders"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]

Where do these little kids learn this?

Remember that not every parent has discretionary income to pay for AOPS or the time (or the car) to take their child to extra classes and clubs. Many parents don’t even know what probability and discreet math are. Many parents just assume their smart kids are being challenged by the school’s curriculum,  and being placed in accelerated math is the most accelerated a kid can be. [/quote]

Khan academy, AoPS forums, alcumus, books from the library, and tons of other free online resources or apps.  Kids could also ask their advanced math teacher for resources and extensions.  Kids in middle school could join the math team and practice for mathcounts or AMC8, learning a lot of math along the way.

Kids who fail to qualify for Algebra in 7th and then likewise fail to pursue any extracurricular math aren't deliberately slowing down their math instruction because they love math and want to develop a deeper understanding.  It's really because they like math okay but don't particularly love it and are bright but not notably so in math.

I'm not saying that math should be the end all and be all..... but, a kid should show something.  The kid who isn't advanced in math and isn't doing any extra math might be heavily invested in science olympiad or robotics team.  Maybe that kid has achieved something in one of those arenas.  Kids who haven't really achieved anything, aren't particularly advanced, and aren't heavily invested in some sort of STEM activity, and really just have a good GPA don't belong at TJ over the kids who are STEM rockstars.  [/quote]

I have a 12yo who self studied algebra II and scored ~1400 on the SAT. I know about these free math enrichment programs. And my child has used some of them. We cannot afford an actual extra class. But I am able to guide and encourage my kid and give her the time and space. We are very fortunate to be able to do so.  We have good jobs and consistent child care set up. I have the extra time and mental bandwidth to research math resources for her.

But many parents are stressed out about paying bills or taking care of elderly parents. Or maybe they have a SN child. Looking into those free math options isn’t going to happen. Many kids are shuffled all around after school or have to commute to dad’s house across the city 3 times a week. Or maybe they have to come home and babysit younger siblings.

Most kids are not going to push themselves in these conditions without their parents’ support. Most kids will not push themselves in the best conditions without their parents’ support. These are little kids. Yes, my 12yo self studies without a tutor, but she is getting constant encouragement and help from her parents.

My 12yo would not be where she’s at without a lot pushing from us. And we aren’t even one of the ridiculous “3 hours of outside math class a week” families. We just encourage her to work beyond the school’s curriculum because we hope it will give her an advantage.

I recognize that my 12yo isn’t some math genius. She’s been given more opportunities. She’s been given a serious advantage and leg up on many her age. And I know there are many kids who haven’t had these advantages.

So just because free stuff exists doesn’t in any way mean kids from disadvantaged backgrounds should achieve just as well as those in aops academy. For a variety of reasons they cannot. And it’s not necessarily because their parents just don’t value education. For that reason those kids who excel in advanced math alone should be considered. [/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics