Plan to prevent accelerated math before 11th grade scraped
Governor Younkin’s administration removed the Virginia Mathematics Pathways Initiative (VMPI) from Virginia’s Department of Education website. This plan would have prevented students from taking accelerated math courses until the 11th grade. With this initiative’s removal, students who are very good at math can take advanced math classes before 11th grade.
From Fox News:
“This is just another instance of Governor Youngkin delivering on his promises to Virginia’s students and parents,” Macaulay Porter, a spokesperson for the governor, told Fox News Digital in a statement. “The governor pledged to remove the initiative, which would move away from advanced math courses, to restore academic excellence in Virginia and ensure our curriculum is preparing students to excel.”
The education proposal initially made headlines in April 2021 when Loudoun County School Board member Ian Serotkin wrote a Facebook post about the program after a staff briefing, saying it would “eliminate ALL math acceleration prior to 11th grade” and that “only in 11th and 12th grade is there any opportunity for choice in higher math courses.”
His post included a chart with what appeared to be set math courses for 2022-2030 in various school districts.
Virigina Department of Education spokesperson Charles Pyle indicated to Fox News in April 2021 that the courses would allow for at least some variation depending on students’ skill level. “Differentiated instruction means providing instruction that is catered to the learning needs of each child (appropriate levels of challenge and academic rigor),” Pyle said.
Fox News has additional information here.
Category: Society
Marse Robert grins. For an expanded definition of that, research the true history of Washington and Lee College in Lexington VA. Bobby Lee turned down a number of high paying jobs, at prestigious universities, to take over tiny, struggling, Washington College, turning it into a first class school that allowed students to advance at their own pace, yet challenged them to work at higher levels. Too bad that school has gotten away from those ideals. BZ to the Guv for fulfilling a campaign promise.
My Grandson has Sheldon Cooper/Stephen Hawkings level math skills. He was doing college level math while still in grade school. Not sure where he got it from, but we made sure he was encouraged to pursue it. Tho now a junior in HS, his core subjects now are college level, as are others in his school. It’s young’uns like that give me hope for our future.
Anything that holds a bright young kid from realizing their potential is just plain wrong and damaging to society as a whole.
Yes, but the Progs don’t want you to say that. They will scream you are a racist, cuz Blacks can’t do math, supposedly. Personally, I think math doesn’t care about the color of one’s skin.
Left/libtards call it “social justice” and “equity,” comrade!
I met my best friend in the world in an summer accelerated math program following 6th grade.
We have remained friends since then and both received college scholarships because of what started that year.
Kids by nature get bored when they are not challenged. Bored kids are by nature, going to find something to do and most of the time, that is not a good thing.
The previous policy was a race to the bottom.
Youngkin is on a roll.
MAGA!
What possible reason could ANY administration have for preventing a child from realizing his or her full potential?
In the same manner that a rising tide lifts all boats, a dry seabed makes everyone an equally-capable seafarer.
A classic and prophetic science fiction short story may answer that question.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrison_Bergeron
The full text of the short story is at the link below.
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=ZGVmYXVsdGRvbWFpbnxtc3JlZG1hbmVuZ2xpc2h8Z3g6MjdlZjYzZmNmMjFjMjgxZA
Don’t forget “Examination Day,” by Henry Slesar (as shown on the Twilight Zone reboot in the ’80s):
Wow! The end result of government efforts at dumbing down the children.
Pol Pot did it for real in Cambodia. Sought to kill everyone smart enough to go to college (except for himself and his Khmer Rouge buddies, of course) to eliminate societal inequality.
Unfortunately, many publik shcool systems do all they can to hold everyone to the same level thus holding the gifted and more capable back.
Everyone’s equal if they’re all equally ignorant, comrade!
Is “equity,” comrade!
As Kurt Vonnegut wrote ’bout where this is going:
We in the Commissariat disagree with this capitalistic policy! We need serf to take care of our needs -someone has to clean the dacha, harvest the crops, do our laundry and feed us!
WE DEMAND OUR FREE SHIT ANS WANT IT NOW!
Intellectual and physical maturity are not synched up by nature. When someone is prepared to understand and learn then they are ready and ought not be prevented.
As to the more likely situation, there is a reason why colleges have to offer remedial arithmetic aka pre-Algebra programs or pre-calculus.
Some of that is entirely related to horrible teachers but probably as much is from forcing children along when they have not come to terms with the fundamentals and principles of topics.
I taught accounting and business courses from ab initio through the masters level for many years and gave a fair amount of basic algebra instruction to students who should already have “been there” before they got there. On the uptick, when you put a concept into context you can really see someone pick it up and hit the ground running.
Very pleased with Governor Youngkin, so far, and am looking forward to Virginia discovering what a good deal they have come into.
That first reason is why Gifted & Talented education exists to prevent it– unmanaged asynchronous development is the cause of more stupidity and waste of talent than you’d believe.
Left/libtards are against Gifted ed and often frought with issues it would’ve helped.
Some how back in the day I got voluntold I was taking advanced math. I ended up taking trig and calculus. Ruined my GPA because I sucked at math.
More proof that why free nations lead the world in innovation because we let the brightest shine.