Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy Help, my 10th grader is failing algebra 2

It sounds to me like you're describing what is typically taught in precalculus. I'm teaching Algebra II right now and taking precalculus (in preparation for teaching it--or at least providing human-in-the-room help--next year) and am seeing a huge jump in complexity between them. But between Algebra I and II, not so much.

Some examples of how my dysgraphic ds uses accommodations for dysgraphia for his math classes (note: he's in high school, currently taking Algebra II, and doing well). I've listed the challenge first, then the accommodation, and listed the challenges roughly in order of larger challenge to lesser challenge in terms of impact.

1) Amount of time it takes to finish homework. This is one challenge that he can't entirely get around, so he lives with it. That said, when the amount of time has been so significant that it cut into his time to complete other work and also have a semblance of a life, he's used typing to turn in his work and he's also had an accommodation to do every other problem in the assignment or in one class was allowed to do just one problem of each type. That worked great for him, but he also had no issues at the time with understanding the concept and "getting it" on the first try. Re typing assignments, there are software solutions. The best is the Efofex software, and the Efofex folks will give students with a disability a 10-year free license to all of their software modules. There are also math formula apps and graphing apps on the iPad, as well as other solutions for computer keyboarding of for writing formulas.

2) Keeping track of assignments and making sure they are turned in. This includes simple (to nt folks) things like putting his name and assignment on the paper. He's had this issue in most of his classes, and math class in many ways was the one class that helped him learn how to deal with it because there is so much repeated structure in math - the paper always has the same heading with just a change in assignment number, and homework is usually daily so he knows to expect it etc, and his math teachers are usually good about either listing the assignment on the board or on a website daily so he can reliably find the assignment and he can easily repeat the same step of looking in the same place each class period. And this is an excellent example of where knowing for certain what the diagnosis is can help - dysgraphia isn't just about handwriting - it's about a lack of automaticity which can extend into other things, such as remembering to check the board to see what your assignment for the day is. Dysgraphic kids take a lot longer to have things such as this that seem straightforward become "automatic" (some of these things never do become automatic) - so it's important to be able to see where the challenge is impacting, and to understand that it's not as easy as telling a student "look at the board" - you have to give some type of repeated support until it really does become something the student knows to do on his/her own.

3) Challenges with taking notes - ds is so challenged with speed of handwriting combined with sloppiness of it combined with errors made while copying that he can't use handwriting at all for taking notes. His default accommodation for years has been to just remember everything. He still relies on that a lot, but he has an official accommodation where his teacher gives him a copy of her class notes which he prints out and keeps in his notebook. If his teacher hadn't been willing to give him a copy of her notes, he would have been able to get a copy of another students' notes per his 504 plan. Some schools will also let students audio record lectures (our high school will not).

4) Switching numbers when copying or making what look like silly mistakes when copying. This happens frequently to my ds, and it's something that happens even when he's typing. The only way to get "around" it is to check his work, and if he checks his work just by doing the problem over again, he sometimes makes mistakes the second time around on problems he had correct the first time around. The thing he's done over the years is to look for ways to "check" problems for accuracy that aren't just repeating the same process. Look for ways to see that the answer you have makes sense. And all of this checking leads to the next big challenge:

5) Running out of time on tests. DS has an official accommodation for extended time on in-class tests and on standardized tests. In our experience, this is an *easy* accommodation to get if you have an official diagnosis and can show that your student has run out of time on previous testing.

Again, if you want accommodations in place, you'll need the diagnosis and you'll need to work through which accommodations are needed and how to implement them.

Hope some of this helps!

Best wishes,

polarbear

I think there are lots of things to sort through here. Most of it has little to do with his math ability, so remind your son not to get down on his math potential as you work through it.


Hang in there.

I also think what is considered to be a "huge jump in complexity" is dependent on the individual. None of these concepts were a huge jump in complexity for me as a high school student and so far haven't been for my ds, although I can see some that are causing him to think more than others. He's had some trig thrown in with his Algebra II course, and it was *easy* for him - the easiest (from his perspective) of anything he's done in Alg II. Not so easy for some of the other students in his class.

I also think it's important to keep in mind, as Mom2Two points out - having one challenging course doesn't mean everything from here on out is going to not work - I suspect that many of us had that one class in either high school or college that was totally completely unexpectedly difficult (compared to our expectations of smooth sailing because it was a class in a subject we were great at) and it was simply that - a class to get through, and once you'd moved on you'd move on.

I'm not saying this is the issue here - if dysgraphia or some other challenge is at play, it's not going to go away with this class. But if it's simply the material or the teacher or whatever things will be ok after this class is over. They'll be ok if it's dysgraphia or another LD too. The key is to understand what's up.

polarbear

It sounds like it's worth remembering that different schools teach the same concepts in classes with different names. I had a heck of a time getting credit for my summer Analytical Geometry class, because those concepts were taught (if at all - it was far more rigorous than anything my peers got) in Algebra II.

algebra 2 killed me

Drennen understands what is being taught. He is able to sit with me at home and walk me through the problems and get them right without the use of a calculator. When Drennen does his homework without me, I double check his work with an online calculator that shows the steps. This way he can see where he made a mistake in his head. It is usually a careless error such as not carrying the one and throws the answer off. He also helps his friends who don't understand the math, to understand it and they go on to make good grades, while he is the last one to finish and squeaks by. He has a 70 average, so not truly failing. I understand pre-calculus, and calculus are difficult, but Drennen helps students in these classes with their homework, and they also are passing. We have known since Drennen was in elementary school that his handwriting was an issue, but mostly in English. Drennen is not in honors English 3 because of this, and it was his choice. He took Algebra 1 in 8th grade and scored a 89 for the year. Last year in honors Geometry, he scored a 96 for the year. His standardized test scores are extremely high in all subjects. In his English 3 class, he is the only sophomore in his junior class. The juniors are soon taking the ACT, so she reviewed for it in class. Drennen took the practice test with them and did extremely well, which helped his confidence. What I'm trying to say, is Drennen fully understands the math, but by doing it in his head, is unable to show it. I am back in college and Drennen is my math tutor, I have never understood math myself, until now.

Thanks for the reply. The District has an online algebra 2 class that allows the use calculators, and Drennen is being required to take it, even if he passes the class this year. Like I said, it is only Drennen's teacher not allowing them. If he does extremely well on it, the principal will re-consider the pre-calculus placement, but not likely. Calculator policies are left up to the individual teachers. Drennen does do his homework, but does not turn it in. I have always found that if Drennen has 0's in a class, he is having difficulty with the teacher, and refuses to go near them. He has a hard time being fussed at especially in front of his peers. We are working on this issue, since he is going to have to overcome this issue in order to succeed.

Thank you. Usually when Drennen struggles with writing, he laughs it off, as his quirk, and moves on. Sometimes, his teachers will take points off for writing, but he never gets upset because he understands why, and can't blame them. They actually joke with him, and tell him one day he'll have a secretary. Last year, the highest score he could achieve was a 50 on his writing assignments. He understood why, so no issue. He was not held back, he passed and went on to the next level honors class and is doing well. He is upset, because only one teacher doesn't understand and is holding him back.

According to the school, Algebra 2 is the most failed subject in the district. I of course do not understand why. If that is the case, shouldn't we find a way to help kids better understand it. Drennen's classmates actually look to him for help, because they do not understand the teacher. This is also the issue. Why can my child teach his classmates and they go on to honors pre-calculus while he doesn't. Maybe he should stop helping them so the rest of the class is held back right along with him. Of course this won't happen. Drennen loves helping others and when they succeed, he is happy he was able to help. The teacher is aware that Drennen is tutoring and helping, which is even more puzzling as to why she believes Drennen is not capable of the work.