Algebra and High School Graduation

You may or may not be aware that California has announced that they will require Algebra for high school graduation. Students will be required to take it in the 8th grade and repeat it until a passing grade is achieved.

I wholeheartedly support this idea. Others don't. One of those is Jerry Pournelle, who next to Robert Heinlein is my favorite author. He says:

Still, I offer it as my opinion that in Los Angeles, given the mixture of good teachers and hacks and time servers we have on the LAUSD faculty, requiring one to pass algebra as a condition for graduation from high school is not a good idea. The Army wants you to have a high school diploma. So do most apprenticeship programs. So do most community colleges, which have become the major source of non-professional health care workers and technicians. If any of those careers needs algebra it can be taught in community college, or so think I; and the Army (actually Navy and Air Force even more so) has an excellent record of teaching algebra and trigonometry to those whose assignments need that. I think LAUSD ought to offer algebra, but I don't think it ought to be required for graduation. More on this after I catch up with other work; meanwhile if you have thought out opinions -- and particularly data -- on this subject I'd be interested.

I disagree with Dr. Pournelle so I wrote to him today:

Dr. Pournelle,

I want to start by saying that I have been a fan of yours for many years. I first read The Mercenary as an NJROTC cadet in 1979 and was later almost kicked out of my (required) speech and drama class for using "The Line Marines March" as my solo reading. Somehow the teacher didn't think it expressed appropriate views.

Anyway, I am writing to you regarding the recent decision to require Algebra as a requirement for graduation.

Unlike many I wholeheartedly support the idea. The purpose of school is to not only impart a set of facts but to teach children how to think critically and utilize those facts. In my opinion, as someone who struggled with math in school and now works in a math intensive field, Algebra really is necessary to this process.

While many think that most children will not be able to handle the complex subject matter, especially at the 8th grade level, I again disagree. I tend to agree that with the recent report on math education that found the major hurdle in teaching Algebra is insufficient preparation in the lower grades. Especially on the subject of fractions. If California addresses this issue I think they will be successful in this effort, and since, as you have pointed out, the number one factor leading students to drop out is Algebra drop out rates may be reduced, and a high school diploma may mean something again.

Thank you for your time

I will let you know if he writes back. If he does it may not be pretty, Dr. Pournelle doesn't have the reputation of one who suffers fools gladly.