I believe we can all agree that perseverance and confidence play a significant role in success. No matter what example of success we come up with, we can safely say that confidence and perseverance played a key role. For instance, confidence is built with each win we achieve, no matter how small. However, we aren’t perfect, so we cannot count on perfect records and thus must persevere through the inevitable failures. Taken together, confidence and perseverance are essential to any subsequent success.
A few weeks ago, I read an article in the New York Times Sunday Review entitled, “Is Algebra Necessary?” The author, Andrew Hacker, suggested that the math requirements in our high schools and colleges are a leading contributor to high school and college drop out rates. According to Hacker, “making math mandatory prevents us from discovering and developing young talent.” He also goes on to suggest that new classes should emerge addressing what he terms “citizen statistics.” These courses would cover topics such as the Consumer Price Index, and help “familiarize students with the kind of numbers that describe and delineate our personal and public lives.”
I highly agree with his idea and believe there is a place for a course on citizen statistics, however, within a curriculum that covers Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, and other advanced courses. In fact, I believe Hacker’s heart is in the right place. He ultimately wants more students to succeed in school and subsequently in their lives. I too want the same thing as I am sure does every educator. The difference is that I believe there is still a place for a solid math education and we need to consider its benefits before we eliminate it.