HISD may alter math-science requirement:Students may cut high school load

[Judi Lynn]

May 12, 2005, 1:21AM

HISD may alter math-science requirement
Students may cut high school load with early credits; experts fear plan is 'a step backward'
By JASON SPENCER
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle

Houston ISD students could earn high school diplomas without taking a single math or science class after their sophomore year under a proposal that is drawing criticism from some national education experts. Critics say the change will leave students unprepared for college and the workplace.

"I'm surprised they would be considering this move," said Anne Tweed, president of the 55,000-member National Science Teachers Association. "That's a step backward."

Superintendent Abe Saavedra wants to do away with a policy that mandates three years of math and science courses for all high school students. Instead, students who pass high school-level courses in the eighth grade would get credit toward a diploma. State law requires three math and science credits to graduate.

Saavedra's proposal, which is expected to win school board approval today, runs counter to a national trend of school systems requiring students to spend more time in math and science classes before they graduate. The decision is even more curious, some education experts said, given the fact that more than two-thirds of HISD's 2004 graduates who enrolled in local community colleges last fall were required to take remedial courses.
(snip/...)

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/topstory/3178343
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[Trillo]

1. What the article doesn't appear to address

is that only about 1/4 of those students will graduate from 4-year college. Without the college degree, HS students are spending too much time in classroom environments for time spent in learning labor and for which they will never be equitably compensated. That's exploitation of the larger group.

This at least looks like it 'starts' to reverse that inequity. A living wage is the another way to go, and so to is reducing the wages paid to those of college degree.

Flame away....

[Retired AF Dem]

2. No flame here

Back in my parents day if you did'nt have plans to go to college many locations had techinal high schools which taught a trade. My dad attended Hammond Tech to learn how to be a machinist. He made more money in his life time than many college grads did.

[Bridget Burke]

4. But there are NO plans to increase vocational training.

Reducing math & science requirements will just ensure that fewer students will even get into 4-year college programs. What exactly is "learning labor"?

Which politicians are advocating a "living wage"? None in Texas, that's for sure.

[Trillo]

8. What is "learning labor"?

As I used the term: compulsory time spent in school "learning."

I think Boxer and Kennedy offered an amendment to increase the federal minimum wage in 2004. I believe it was voted down.

[Scooter24]

3. I've always been an advocate for

stricter curriculums focusing on the major subjects, less on extra-curricular's. Mandatory 4 years of the 5 majors: English, Mathematics, Science, History, and Physical Education. I understand the need to allow those gifted students the ability to test out of courses in which they excel in. Though entry into these advanced math and science courses at the middle-school level should only be with teacher approval. I couldn't imagine having an 8th classroom full of 30 students where you are trying to teach them advanced concepts of coordinate geometry and theorems. Or how about a 7th grade Algebra II class.

My alma matter is starting a program where they will offer students the opportunity to attend online classes over the summer. The point is to diversify the curriculum with special topic-specific courses that can be studied at home under parental supervision.

[kath]

11. Requiring 4 years of HS math is ridiculous. Very, very few people ever

need to use anything beyond Algebra I in the real world, and many don't even need that. Do a GOOD job of teaching basic math, consumer math (how much is that sweater if it's 30% off, how does compounded interest work, etc), some logic (logic skills are certainly lacking in the populace) and probability, and maybe get in that Algebra I and some basic geometry (how much wallpaper do you nead to paper a 6x6x8 foot bathroom, etc) and quit there.

Unless someone is going into a scientific field or wants to major in math in college, 4 years is excessive.

(I'm an MD, and hubby has a Ph.D in Bio. He agrees with me that requiring EVERYONE to take lots of math in HS is bogus. Even some educators agree that Algebra serves as a "gatekeeping" function - separating out the "smart" college-bound kids)

And college is not for everyone. There should be good Vo-Tech schools.

[6000eliot]

5. This is just a fucking stupid idea.

If the students are not going on to college, then that's all the more reason they should have some exposure to science and mathematics in high school. Education shouldn't be about vocational training. It's already too much about forcing mindless conformity onto people; students should be taught to think for themselves.

[dsc]

6. While I am against the proposal

I think the following should be noted. In many districts now it is possible to take geometry in the 8th grade. Thus the first math class taken in high school for some number of students is Algebra 2. In my district students need 4 high school maths. That means Alg 2, Advanced Functions and Modeling, Trig, and Advanced Math is the least they could take. I think a reasonable compromise would be allowing high school credit for one math taken in middle school.

[cap]

7. so if you want to go to college later in life

you got a lot more work to catch up on.

No wonder we "need" H1B visas for math, science and computers.

And this is Houston home of the space launch.

[DiverDave]

9. I KNOW!!

Lets make people STUPID!!
They will vote republican for LIFE!!!

/sarcasm off

One of the stupidest things I've heard yet...lets just let them quit school at 14.
They can go right into the factory's that will come back when they can get people to take $2 an hour.

God damned republicans are EVIL.

[central scrutinizer]

10. If these students have college aspirations,

this is a huge mistake. I work at a major university and meet with many incoming freshmen during their summer orientation and registration sessions. All incoming freshmen are asked to take a math placement exam to facilitate placing them in the correct level math class consistent with their major and academic goals. The strongest negative correlate in these exams is the number of years since a student's last math class. The more years away from math, the worse they do and it doesn't seem to matter much what their SATs are or what their last math class was. Even students who were in AP calculus as juniors and took no math as a senior are amazed at how much they have forgotten and how poorly they place. Math is like a foreign language - use it or lose it.

[mainer]

12. The slave underclass doesn't need math and science

so don't give them any ideas. It might make them uppity and think they deserve to make a living wage.

[kodi]

13. raise a generation who have no understanding of math and science?

oh, yeah, good idea when the US high school kids rank at the bottom in those subjects compared to other first world kids.

want to destroy america? dont teach kids math and science.

i have taught under- and grad courses at universities, and K-12 in public schools. this proposal is not in the best interests of the students or the country.

the problem is that the government will not pay sufficient salaries to recruit the best teachers possible in these subjects.

who the hell wants to walk out of college (usually with a shitload of student loans) and take a teacher's job paying $21,000?


america is strong because we have the best scientists. once we don't, we will no longer be strongest nation in the world