Algebra I is known as a gateway class: Students who pass the course are more likely to take advanced math courses, earn a college degree, and earn more money as adults.
But for many children, their path to success in Algebra I is laid out years before they begin the course. Third-grade math scores can strongly predict which students will succeed in Algebra I and which may struggle.
A recent working paper analysis of test scores from more than 1.7 million Texas students explored the phenomenon. It found that gaps in Algebra I passing rates between low-income, black and Hispanic students and their more affluent, white and Asian peers can be largely attributed to how well students master fundamental and early math skills.
Third-grade math scores are the first way researchers can determine how well children learn math at an early age, said Ben Backes, a senior economist at the American Institutes for Research and one of the working paper’s authors. But “education doesn’t start in third grade,” he said: These fundamental skills are learned much earlier.
Other research has shown the link between early success and later academic success, but this study, conducted by AIR and the National Center for Longitudinal Data Analysis in Educational Research, or CALDER, explored Algebra I specifically because this course is so crucial for students.
The study also showed how the pandemic derailed some students’ academic growth. For example, low-income students who had the same test scores as their wealthier peers fell further behind. Students with already low test scores saw their math skills decline more sharply than students with higher scores.
Policymakers have tried other ways to increase Algebra I passing rates, such as delaying the course until ninth grade or enrolling all students in the course. But these policies may not address the root of the problem, the authors conclude: “Our findings highlight the importance of targeting resources to mathematics teaching in early primary school, particularly for low-performing students. »
However, that message still needs to be conveyed to school leaders, said Deborah Stipek, director of the faculty of Development and research in early mathematics educationa network of scholars focused on improving mathematics education for young children.
In California, for example, education majors take two or three courses on teaching reading, compared to one course on teaching mathematics, said Stipek, a professor emeritus at Stanford University. And, in a recent survey of nearly 100 California superintendentsthe majority ranked English language arts as their top educational priority; mathematics was third.
There are teaching tools to help teachers who may have a handful of students behind their peers. But “in places where you have a very large group of kids who are living in poverty or learning English, you have classrooms where the majority of first grade kids are way behind,” Stipek said. “We need more and better education, in general. »
This story about early math was produced by The Hechinger Report, an independent, nonprofit news organization focused on inequality and innovation in education. Subscribe to the Hechinger newsletter.
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