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Monday's Most Active Threads
Yesterday's threads with the most engagement included math in MCPS schools, laziness as a special need, Florida's immigration law, and Teacher Appreciation Week.
The two most active threads yesterday have already been discussed, so I'll start with what was actually the third most active thread yesterday. Titled, "Algebra 2 is currently offered at TPMS" and posted in the "Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS)" forum, this is quite a bizarre thread. The best way that I can think of to convey the essence of this thread is to transport us all back to the time of my youth when I would occasionally stay up late to watch the "The Twilight Zone", the original not the remakes. Imagine the voice of Rod Stirling introducing an episode as you read this. So, come with me, if you will, to the Twilight Zone. For the last several days a poster has revived several old threads in the MCPS schools forum in order to highlight old posts about the math class offerings in various MCPS schools. The argument this poster is trying to make is that Algebra 2 is only offered at "a few wealthy schools" and either implying or explicitly claiming (I'm not sure which) that Algebra 2 is not offered at Takoma Park Middle School. This thread was created in response to that poster to assure everyone that Algebra 2 is indeed being offered by TPMS. Yes, dear readers, this is what resulted in the third most active thread yesterday. The very first response is from the poster who has been reviving all the threads, who simultaneously claims that Algebra 2 is only being offered at Frost Middle School and that TPMS does offer the class, albeit reluctantly. I'm not sure how both of these claims can be true, but the poster goes on to repeat this contradictory argument multiple times. The poster, who also has a bad habit of replying to their own posts, would ultimately end up posting 42 times in this 11 page thread. Not that they are obsessed or anything. I can't fully immerse myself in this particular twilight zone and haven't read all of the pages. But, from what I understand, some MCPS elementary schools offer a class called AIM. I have no idea what that stands for, but the class seems to be some sort of advanced math that prepares students for algebra. Many of the students who complete this class naturally want to continue into algebra and, eventually, algebra 2. Therefore, TPMS provides a class to meet this demand. Apparently, students who did not take AIM in elementary school are not able to take algebra 2, presumably because they lack the prerequisites. Depending on your point of view, this is either a huge travesty of justice that represents the gross inequities plaguing MCPS or a completely normal and acceptable arrangement. Basically, this debate went around and around until I eventually locked the thread. Yes, I had to lock a thread about Algebra 2. It truly is the Twilight Zone.