You’re Not Too Dumb For Algebra
So Get Ready For a Lot More Of It in School
How much does math matter? In a New York Times op-ed last summer, political scientist Andrew Hacker suggested that the answer is not very much. Algebra, contended Hacker, isn’t necessary for all high school students—and it’s a barrier to graduation for some. Last night, at a Zócalo event at the Peterson Automotive Museum, a panel of people who work in and think about math education in America expressed a very different point of view. The panel’s moderator, Jennifer Ouellette, author of The Calculus Diaries, opened the conversation by finding fault …
