Requiring Algebra II In High School Gains Momentum

ChadHurley writes with this quote from the Washington Post: "Of all of the classes offered in high school, Algebra II is the leading predictor of college and work success, according to research that has launched a growing national movement to require it of graduates. In recent years, 20 states and the District have moved to raise graduation requirements to include Algebra II, and its complexities are being demanded of more and more students. The effort has been led by Achieve, a group organized by governors and business leaders and funded by corporations and their foundations, to improve the skills of the workforce. Although US economic strength has been attributed in part to high levels of education, the workforce is lagging in the percentage of younger workers with college degrees, according to the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development."

Comments

Requirements at the high school level are stupid

[PCM2]

It's dumb to talk about "adding more requirements" to a high school education in America. Requirements for what? Graduation? If you tell a student that he can't graduate high school without learning advanced mathematics that he'll never use in his daily life, you'll just end up with fewer high school graduates, not more educated ones.

K-12 education is compulsory in most states. Until the 12th grade, a low-achieving kid has been forced to be in school. Now you're saying you're going to force him to learn, too? I don't think so. Once that student turns 18, legally there is not a damn thing you can do to keep him in the classroom.

One side effect of all the emphasis on college education these days is that the message to high school students is that a high school diploma is meaningless and only a college degree gives you any advantage in the workforce. So if you're a student who isn't planning to go to college, why would you bother with a high school diploma? It's worthless, right? Especially if the required coursework includes college preparatory classes like Algebra 2 -- a kid who is not college-bound but is held back at age 18 when all of his friends are graduating is going to walk away, and in his mind it will just be good riddance to high school.

On the other hand, for college-bound students, Algebra II is a requirement anyway. It's a requirement because it's a prerequisite for other college courses. Every kid knows this, and the ones who want to get into those courses as soon as possible start signing up for the prerequisites in high school. If they don't do well at them in high school, they can usually re-take them at the college level (and they will, if they want to advance). It's all built into the education system; we don't need any artificial "requirements" at the high school level.

And consider this: In the State of California at least, you do not need a high school diploma to enter the community college program. Let me repeat: There is no prerequisite to enrolling in a community college program other than that you be 18 years of age. So let's say you're a college-bound high school senior who has not yet passed the Algebra II requirement. Are you going to hang around high school for another year, re-taking Algebra II when you've passed all of your other classes? Of course not. You'd enroll in community college and re-take Algebra II while you continue your education, not waste time hanging around an education system that's basically designed to babysit teenagers.