http://www.city-journal.org/2012/cjc0914bezw.htmlZE’EV WURMAN AND BILL EVERS
Out of the Equation
California courts educational failure if it does away with eighth-grade algebra.
City Journal
14 September 2012
A bill sitting on Governor Jerry Brown’s desk would upend 15 years of achievement in mathematics by California students. Sponsored by Oakland Democratic senator Loni Hancock, Senate Bill 1200 would consign the Golden State’s eighth-grade students to a weakened, one-size-fits-all, pre-algebra curriculum prescribed by the Common Core national standards. No longer would qualified California eighth-graders have the opportunity to take Algebra I, as do their peers in high-performing countries. SB 1200 is so wrongheaded, in fact, that it would prohibit schools from offering any options in mathematics, even to high school students. The bill insists that only “one set of standards” be offered at “each grade level” across the entire K–12 span.
****************************************************
Is this true? It sounds wacky even for California.
