I think the main reason that she scored so "low" (81%) is that she was doing some pre-Algebra as a 5th grader, but we changed schools the summer between 5th and 6th.....New school, new cirriculum, new school structure (Middle School) and she was on a varsity sports team. There were a lot of changes, a good number of stressors, some cirriculum building blocks didn't match between the school systems, and other factors that contributed to her limited success.
Eventually, there developed a quasi-advesarial relationship between the teacher and my daughter because my daughter tended to ask A LOT of questions. Intially the math teacher recommended that my daughter advance to Algebra, then changed her mind about 3 weeks before the end of school.
At the end of the day, I want to act in my daughter's best interests.....Would it kill her to repeat pre-Algebra? Probably not, and there may be some benefits as well. But she did work hard and she DID pass the class afterall.....She is eager to please and thrives on the recognition that she associates with being bright and smart and recognized for her academic abilities. Repeating the class could create a ripple effect that will dampen her thrist for that recognition and allow her to make an excuse to be of average academic ability. This is tricky and I don't want to make a mistake that would limit her in the future.
What are the potential pitfalls if she repeats the class? I don't want to project on her; maybe she would welcome a "breather" in her academic schedule.....Although she did start to cry a few tears when she heard the counselor say that she would be repeating the class because of her grade and because "they only teach Algebra to 8th graders...."
