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posted by n1 on Saturday July 22 2017, @04:22PM   Printer-friendly
from the math-is-hard dept.

Algebra is one of the biggest hurdles to getting a high school or college degree — particularly for students of color and first-generation undergrads.

It is also the single most failed course in community colleges across the country. So if you're not a STEM major (science, technology, engineering, math), why even study algebra?

That's the argument Eloy Ortiz Oakley, chancellor of the California community college system, made today in an interview with NPR's Robert Siegel.

At American community colleges, 60 percent of those enrolled are required to take at least one math course. Most — nearly 80 percent — never complete that requirement.

Oakley is among a growing number of educators who view intermediate algebra as an obstacle to students obtaining their credentials — particularly in fields that require no higher level math skills.

Their thinking has led to initiatives like Community College Pathways, which strays away from abstract algebra to engage students in real-world math applications.

-- submitted from IRC


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  • (Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday July 22 2017, @06:39PM (2 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday July 22 2017, @06:39PM (#543030)

    "Nice rant... feel"?

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 23 2017, @01:20AM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 23 2017, @01:20AM (#543196)

    Or did he mean the very last word?

    • (Score: 2) by maxwell demon on Sunday July 23 2017, @11:16AM

      by maxwell demon (1608) on Sunday July 23 2017, @11:16AM (#543338) Journal

      Well, if he stopped after reading the last word, he did indeed read the whole thing, didn't he?

      --
      The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.