I am also from Eastern Europe, but did my Bachelor in the west. For a lot of people there things like limits, series etc. were almost like greek. Speaking of gr

I am also from Eastern Europe, but did my Bachelor in the west. For a lot of people there things like limits, series etc. were almost like greek. Speaking of greek, we did some group study and there was a person there who kept saying E this E that. I was perplexed until I saw he meant Sigma as in sum. But those who didn't know learned it and that was that. I'm not sure it's really that beneficial to force a lot on kids before they are ready to use it or know what it's for. I remember 10th/11th grade sitting and eventually realizing all this stuff we do... I will eventually need to do it to make sure e.g. a building does not crash. And that scared me to death, I did not feel prepared at all. When things are thrown at you before you're ready and can really understand it, it's sort of like you lack a connection to what is essential and what you might be able to do with it on your own. You do your little examples and tasks and solve them, but outside of that context you don't really understand it. I don't think any educational system has figured that out for the majority of kids.