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> Our work on education goes back to the foundation’s earliest days, and our focus on improving math skills goes back almost as far. Although there are many fac

> Our work on education goes back to the foundation’s earliest days, and our focus on improving math skills goes back almost as far. Although there are many factors that affect a student’s trajectory, the evidence shows that it’s extremely important for them to succeed in math. For example, those who pass Algebra I by ninth grade are twice as likely to graduate from high school and more likely to go on to college, get a bachelor’s degree, and go on to a high-paying career. And those who don’t complete Algebra I have just a one-in-five chance of graduating from high school. This looks a lot like correlation/causation confusion. Inability to understand basic algebra seems like it would be strongly correlated with learning disabilities or significantly below average IQ. Getting more students to squeak by with a barely passing grade won't fix those underlying issues.

Xelynega 4y ago
It also looks like conflating "success" with "high-paying career". Most people would probably consider a high paying career success, but the idea that we're not even questioning that assumption when talking about children's education shows how it gets propogated.
- thefounder 4y ago
  I wonder, why would you like your children to pursue a low paying career unless you are already relatively rich/financially "stable"? It's a great adventure to live on the edge when you are young but unfortunately we are not forever young. Add a wife, kids and a low paying job and the story gets dramatic. Not to mention any health issue.
  - Xelynega 4y ago
    This isn't an article titled "what your kids should pursue to live comfortably", it's called "the future our grandchildren deserve". Having the ability to pursue a "low paying career" when you're not financially stable is the future our grandchildren deserve, not just a future where some of them get high paying careers.
isthisthingon99 4y ago
Not to offend you but it sounds like you've never taught an economically disadvantaged child. The first step is they need to feel that they can do it, already a tall order. Learning disabilities are not that relevant here.
- pseudo0 4y ago
  I tutored both economically disadvantaged students, and students with significant learning disabilities. My experience was that the economically disadvantaged students generally could make progress, if you caught them on a good day. Tutoring some of the students with learning disabilities was profoundly depressing though. Some students simply could not understand basic abstraction, like the idea that 'x' represents a number. Same with hypothetical questions. Getting shepherded through Algebra 1 won't magically grant those students abstract reasoning skills, it will just dilute the usefulness of passing the class as a metric.
  - isthisthingon99 4y ago
    Then it sounds like with your specific experience, you probably were in touch with a disproportionate amount of students with "learning disabilities"

Xelynega 4y ago

It also looks like conflating "success" with "high-paying career". Most people would probably consider a high paying career success, but the idea that we're not even questioning that assumption when talking about children's education shows how it gets propogated.

thefounder 4y ago
I wonder, why would you like your children to pursue a low paying career unless you are already relatively rich/financially "stable"? It's a great adventure to live on the edge when you are young but unfortunately we are not forever young. Add a wife, kids and a low paying job and the story gets dramatic. Not to mention any health issue.
- Xelynega 4y ago
  This isn't an article titled "what your kids should pursue to live comfortably", it's called "the future our grandchildren deserve". Having the ability to pursue a "low paying career" when you're not financially stable is the future our grandchildren deserve, not just a future where some of them get high paying careers.

isthisthingon99 4y ago

Not to offend you but it sounds like you've never taught an economically disadvantaged child. The first step is they need to feel that they can do it, already a tall order. Learning disabilities are not that relevant here.

pseudo0 4y ago
I tutored both economically disadvantaged students, and students with significant learning disabilities. My experience was that the economically disadvantaged students generally could make progress, if you caught them on a good day. Tutoring some of the students with learning disabilities was profoundly depressing though. Some students simply could not understand basic abstraction, like the idea that 'x' represents a number. Same with hypothetical questions. Getting shepherded through Algebra 1 won't magically grant those students abstract reasoning skills, it will just dilute the usefulness of passing the class as a metric.
- isthisthingon99 4y ago
  Then it sounds like with your specific experience, you probably were in touch with a disproportionate amount of students with "learning disabilities"