The problem is that the students do not have the skills in the courses they are taking. Students leaving algebra 1 do not have a true algebra 1 background, because the focus is on the HSA, which produces a watered down curriculum. In my old school, students would make it through precalculus without every knowing anything about a quadratic equation! F.O.I.L. is just something to wrap their sandwich in. The problem isnt necessary the number of credits but what is being taught. In a block schedule for 1 semester, it is difficult to "double up" the number of topics covered each day. Instead teachers are teaching half the curriculum in geometry and algebra 2. Obviously students are not prepared. And in Baltimore City, alot of students do not do homework. As stated, math is not a spectator sport. You cant learn it through osmosis. Students need to practice. We need to take a look at the system as a whole and make informative decisions based on what is going on. The purpose of high school is to serve as a transition to college/ work. If students are not prepared then what are we really doing???

I agree with "concerned teacher" 100%. The ONLY way forcing students to take 4 years of math makes any sense is if we actually take the time to bring them up to level, not try to shoehorn them into the "normal high school" curriculum. We are already doing these kids a severe disservice in the math classes they've already got. Extending the same old-same old to four years is not going to help.

The reason there is a problem is because it is too late to make changes in High School. If you want a true educational foundation, you need to start from the beginning. Make the changes in Elementary Schools!!!! You can't expect high school students to change their study habits. They also need to try and get parents more involved with their children's academics. A lot of parents are completely oblivious to their children's grades. The entire curriculum from Kindergarten to 12th grade need major reform. It all starts early and more emphasis needs to be placed at the BEGINNING of a students academic life. Algebra should be taught in MIDDLE SCHOOL!!!!!!

As a former Precalculus teacher, I appreciate what concerned teacher and Alan are saying. I think that these are issues that districts across Maryland and the country are facing, too, as we can see from the U of MD report recently about how students (not just from Baltimore City) are entering college behind what the university system expects of them. I'd like to add an important piece to this, however: BCPS has recognized this problem and has devised a true Algebra 1 curriculum aimed at students who have passed the HSA but might not quite have the typical Algebra 1 skills necessary to perform well in a true Algebra II class. This Algebra 1 class is a transitional class from the real-world, problem-based, data-analysis skills of the HSA to the symbolic manipulation and abstract reasoning of Algebra II. By providing schools with these curricular options, BCPS is recognizing a problem and addressing it in a way where schools and families can choose an option with a student's best interest in mind.

There are many reasons that the children are now less prepared for college math:
1) The Maryland State Curriculum has inserted "Data Analysis & Statistics" into Algebra where it does not belong. This means that other units had to be removed.
2) The Algebra I HSA is a joke - a good prealgebra student can easily pass this test. If a student cannot pass the HSA, they have the option of completing a "project" in order to complete the requirement for graduation. Since when does a project equal a test of the entire curriculum? The Alg. I HSA does not include many topics of Algebra such as Radicals (Square roots), Operations w/ Rational Expressions, and minimizes word problems or any difficult concept.
3) Many students begin their foundations of Algebra I in the middle school. Many administrators of middle schools have elementary versus secondary backgrounds and demand that the teachers use more elementary methods of instruction including cooperative learning regardless of whether it is the best method to teach a particular lesson. The middle schools usually have shorter classes than the high schools and are filled with interruptions and constant schedule changes in order for the children to do "fun" activities.
4) Many teachers no longer have to have degrees in Mathematics to teach math - they simply need to pass a "Praxis" exam given by their county system to become certified in Math.
5) There has been a "push" to include minority students into honors and GT math classes, regardless of their prerequisite skills. This is unfair to the minority students as well as to any other student in the class. A child should be placed where he/she is going to best find success; children should not be placed in order to fill some "quota". The teacher has two choices, fail the slow children, or make the course much easier so that no one will fail.
6) Many children can no longer stay after school for help. With both parents working, the child depends on the regular school bus to get home. Many teacher have too much on their plate to help a child during the day while school is in session.
All of the previous comments are true. My only hope is that this new concern for rigor at the university level will trickle down to the high schools and middle schools where the foundation begins.

This policy is just another example of the mess that education "experts" have made of the Maryland school systems from kindergarten to graduate school. It will lower math achievement because it will discourage students from pursuing challenging math classes early in high school.

victoria, I would like to take issue with several of your points and would like to hear your response as well:

1) and 2) are already addressed by my comments above. The problems with the Algebra 1/Data Analysis are state problems (because it's a state test) and BCPS is well aware of these issues. I think the transitional Algebra 1 class - new this year - is an excellent response to these criticisms of the test and the HSA curriculum and I hope we see improvements in the coming years. If you are not in Baltimore City, then you should encourage your district to look into what the City is doing and encourage your district leadership to do the same.

To address the second part of 2), I will say that you are slightly misrepresenting what the Bridge Projects are. They are not complete substitutes for passing the HSA; the number of projects students must complete is determined by how close they are to passing the HSA. It is not "fail the test, do one project." Some hard-working students are completing up to 7 projects to compensate for their low test scores. No single project equals the work of passing the HSA. These projects are rigorous and require all of the same understanding a student would need if he or she were taking the HSA exam, although it's true that each project is focused around a certain skill from the curriculum (e.g. patterns, functions, data analysis, sampling, etc). I believe most educators would agree that there are many ways to assess students' knowledge and students who know the material but are bad test-takers should not be punished based on the format of the assessment.

3) I can't speak for all middle schools and all high schools, but I was under the impression that most middle schools have 90 minute classes and high schools have 50 minute classes (or 90 minute classes that only last one semester). I would be happy to hear from others about their personal experience at their individual schools if I am mistaken. I'm also not sure why doing "fun" activities is a bad thing if those activities can be properly aligned to state standards. I would say that most teachers strive for such a classroom!

4) Maryland has - I believe - some of the toughest criteria to be considered highly qualified in the country. In order to be certified to teach secondary math (that's grades 7-12, but usually includes 6th grade, too) a teacher must have 36 hours of mathematics credit in undergrad. In many schools, this is an entire major's worth of credit. In my opinion, actually, it's TOO high because it excludes people who were engineering majors or physics majors (i.e. people with more than enough math knowledge to teach 8th grade math but lack the specific math credit). However, some programs like BCTR have been allowed to bring in engineers to be math teachers, but only if they take continuing math content courses. And yes, teachers must pass the Praxis, but they also must pass the Praxis II, which is strictly content-based and much more difficult than the Praxis I math because it includes trigonometry and calculus and other advanced topics. Finally, to receive advanced certification, teachers much also complete the Praxis II - Pedagogy test, which requires them to have knowledge of math-specific teaching strategies. They can't even complete projects if they fail!

5) Based on this comment I'd be surprised if you're talking about what goes on in Baltimore City because you'd be hard pressed to find too many classes without "minorities" in them. I think this comment could potentially turn into a book of responses, so I'll try to keep my response short, although I'd love if others took it up below: for too long, minority students have been actively and unfairly discouraged (by teachers, parents and peers) from taking advanced classes in math or otherwise. I can say from my own personal experience in high school (not in Maryland) that I knew African American students who did not push themselves academically for fear of social backlash and I wish they had had teachers willing to push them into advanced classes. I can also say from personal conversations with teachers AND students that there is the same hesitancy among some African American students here in Baltimore. We need to break this cycle that says that advanced classes are for white kids and low level classes are for black kids. Given the choice between challenging kids too much and letting smart kids possibly squander their talents, I'll take the former. Additionally, I think it's a benefit for ALL students to be in a diverse classroom and interact with peers from all backgrounds. Lastly, on this blog, I am quite adverse to using terms that are particularly charged without evidence and I would challenge you explain what you mean by "quota." Does your school district have an official quota? Has school leadership ever used this word? Are you talking about a literal quota or a figurative one? There is a HUGE difference between the two, and I would encourage you to explain what you mean, otherwise you leave the impression that something illegal is going on in your school district, which is a very serious accusation that I hope you take seriously.

6) I agree! Let's work to find ways to improve the quality of after-school programming and give teachers an extra planning period to take things "off their plate" so they can spend more time working for the betterment of the students!

victoria, I GREATLY look forward to your response as well as other responses below.

Does anyone know what's going in Maryland? Perhaps you might check SOAR, a sound report of what's going on in the public schools: http://www.mhec.state.md.us/pressroom/April2009/April2009MHECSOARReportReleased.asp

And, speaking of mathematics, has anyone done a study of college syllabi to find the extent and type of mathematics operations performed in courses. If you're not a math major, you're likely not going to be doing much beyond simple solving for unknowns if that.

If you're going to say students need more math in college, then prove it. Every syllabus should outline what math skills are needed and provide a clear connection in the course of study with sufficient use to justify knowing any particular mathematics skill. Without a sound study, there is no basis for requiring a fourth course in mathematics. It's what one believes to be true, but there's no valid evidence to support it. This is how urban legends become gospel

And, the best predictor of college success has almost always been HS GPA, not the SAT mathematics score or even the verbal score, according to regular press releases by SOAR done by MHEC. This is not what someone believes to be true. It's what is true

The issue is alignment. Public school curriculums are better aligned with college curriculums.

The SAT is an anomaly. The question we should be asking is "If HS GPA is the best predictor of college success, why do standardized tests continue to fail to adequately describe student performance in the public schools?"

And, an equally important question is "Why is educational policy driven by standardized tests?

As a teacher in another field, I realized math instruction had mutated into a hand-holding exercise. years ago. Geometry students don't have to think, they just have to sequence the given steps of a proof in cooperative groups.