The left’s quest to inject social justice into math has been going on for years. A lot of people are fighting to keep it from happening.The College Fix reports:
1,800 STEM scholars sign letter against proposal that would dumb down K-12 math in CaliforniaThere’s an effort in California to dumb down math at the K-12 level in the name of equity, but a growing number of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math scholars urge officials to reject the plan.To date, nearly 1,800 STEM scholars have signed on to the “Open Letter on K-12 Mathematics,” stating they are alarmed at the current proposal to fight achievement gaps in math pushed by progressives in the Golden State.As The College Fix has previously reported, a framework before the California Department of Education would move more advanced math classes from the state’s middle schools to high schools to make math more equitable to students of all levels.The framework also rebukes student giftedness, alleging the concept creates “considerable inequities in mathematics education.”But the some 1,800 scholars who have signed the open letter argue that developing students who can perform high-level math is crucial to the nation’s vital information technology infrastructure and economic competitiveness:
College students who need to spend their early years taking introductory math courses may require more time to graduate. They may need to give up other opportunities and are more likely to struggle academically. Such a reform would disadvantage K-12 public school students in the United States compared with their international and private-school peers. It may lead to a de facto privatization of advanced mathematics K-12 education and disproportionately harm students with fewer resources.Another deeply worrisome trend is devaluing essential mathematical tools such as calculus and algebra in favor of seemingly more modern “data science.” As STEM professionals and educators we should be sympathetic to this approach, and yet, we reject it wholeheartedly. The ability to gather and analyze massive amounts of data is indeed transforming our society. But “data science” – computer science, statistics, and artificial intelligence – is built on the foundations of algebra, calculus, and logical thinking.
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