![]() Teens who are eager readers should be able to study literature instead of math young people who aren't particularly adept at any academic discipline might pick up art, music, computers, or even trade skills. It would be preferable for schools to offer students more choices, and offer them as early as possible. It's done this way for a reason: The students who like math (usually a minority) should have the opportunity to move on as rapidly as possible.įor everyone else… well, advanced math just isn't that important. ![]() Many schools offer advanced mathematics to a select group of students well before the high school level so that they can take calculus by their junior or senior year. Some young people clearly excel at math, even at very early ages. Contrary to what this guidance seems to suggest, math is not the end-all and be-all-and it's certainly not something that all kids are equally capable of learning and enjoying. The entire second chapter of the framework is about connecting math to social justice concepts like bias and racism: "Teachers can support discussions that center mathematical reasoning rather than issues of status and bias by intentionally defining what it means to do and learn mathematics together in ways that include and highlight the languages, identities, and practices of historically marginalized communities." Teachers should also think creatively about what math even entails: "To encourage truly equitable and engaging mathematics classrooms we need to broaden perceptions of mathematics beyond methods and answers so that students come to view mathematics as a connected, multi-dimensional subject that is about sense making and reasoning, to which they can contribute and belong." "The belief that 'I treat everyone the same' is insufficient: Active efforts in mathematics teaching are required in order to counter the cultural forces that have led to and continue to perpetuate current inequities." "All students deserve powerful mathematics we reject ideas of natural gifts and talents," reads a bulletpoint in chapter one of the framework. Math is really about language and culture and social justice, and no one is naturally better at it than anyone else, according to the framework. The framework's overriding perspective is that teaching the tough stuff is college's problem: The K-12 system should concern itself with making every kid fall in love with math.īroadly speaking, this entails making math as easy and un-math-like as possible. Of course, de-prioritizing instruction in high school calculus would not really solve this problem-and in fact would likely make it worse-but the department does not seem overly worried. "The push to calculus in grade twelve is itself misguided," says the framework.Īs evidence for this claim, the framework cites the fact that many students who take calculus end up having to retake it in college anyway. In fact, the framework concludes that calculus is overvalued, even for gifted students. "In summary, middle-school students are best served in heterogeneous classes." "The inequity of mathematics tracking in California can be undone through a coordinated approach in grades 6–12," reads a January 2021 draft of the framework. The department's solution is to prohibit any sorting until high school, keeping gifted kids in the same classrooms as their less mathematically inclined peers until at least grade nine. The department is worried that too many students are sorted into different math tracks based on their natural abilities, which leads some to take calculus by their senior year of high school while others don't make it past basic algebra. The draft of the framework is hundreds of pages long and covers a wide range of topics. California's Department of Education is working on a new framework for K-12 mathematics that discourages gifted students from enrolling in accelerated classes that study advanced concepts like calculus.
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