I think the greater problem is not with the standards (which I know nothing about) but with who is teaching it. I have talked to people who are elementary schoo

I think the greater problem is not with the standards (which I know nothing about) but with who is teaching it. I have talked to people who are elementary school teachers who know nothing about mathematics, yet they are given the task to teach it to children. They have little understanding of why the mathematics they teach is important and useful. If you don't give children a solid foundation in their formative years, they will always struggle with mathematics.