Currently, there has been a notable trend in the increasingly competitive race to get into popular colleges, as acceptance rates drop and the number of applicants only continues to increase. With the current acceptance rates of last year’s University of California (UC) schools showing record low acceptance rates, it has become more apparent that receiving college counseling guidance and support as early as middle school and into high school is becoming more important to ensure that parents avoid making mistakes in their child’s academic progression and to ensuring that he/she is academically ready when the college application process comes around.
One common mistake parents make is assume that decisions made in middle school do not impact academic progress in high school. Math in particular causes a lot of issues in this regard, as dependent on the high school and type of mathematics that the school provides (whether it is standard or Common Core track), this will influence what classes the child will take. These are the two standard paths that occur when a student goes to a standard mathematics track high school:
Starting at Pre-Algebra in Middle School -> Standard Mathematics Track High School
Starting at 6th Grade Mathematics in Middle School -> Standard Mathematics Track High School
From the two charts, it is evident that if the child starts in 6th grade mathematics or Pre-Algebra, the type of courses that the student completes becomes an issue. If a student starts in 6th grade mathematics, the student will not only be unable to complete all of the mathematics courses that are provided in a normal high school and make them less competitive for colleges, but also will miss out on taking higher level math or Advanced Placement (AP) courses. AP courses specifically can boost the GPA and ranking of the student.
The situation can become even more complicated if the student ends up going to a high school that has Common Core curriculum in place. This would be the two potential paths if the student goes to a Common Core curriculum school:
Starting at Pre-Algebra in Middle School -> Common Core Standards High School
Starting at 6th Grade Mathematics in Middle School -> Common Core Standards High School
This pathing is the usual sequence that may exist in a high school using the Common Core State Standards for mathematics, but it may vary based on the name and course selections that the particular high school has. It becomes even more evident that a student who takes the 6th Grade Mathematics path may even fall behind more, not even completing the second semester in the Calculus course as indicated by the fact that they take (AP) Calculus A, and not the B portion. This is due to the design of the Common Core curriculum where Common Core Mathematics III involves the integration of both Algebra II and Pre-Calculus concepts. Students who take Common Core Mathematics III only complete the first semester of Pre-Calculus and are required to take the second semester of Pre-Calculus the year afterwards.
This situation goes beyond compromising the student as a competitive academic scholar in terms of math. Taking Pre-Calculus so late also means that the student has not completed Algebra 2 until the end of their junior year. This means that the student will likely be unable to score a desirably high score in the Math portion of the SAT or ACT test. Also, taking Pre-Calculus in the junior year will leave most students taking this track unable to score well on the more advanced SAT Subject Test Math 2. Both of these exams are oftentimes seen as important baselines for colleges to gauge a student’s math prowess.
We hope that this article helps with understanding the math progression for students. Royal Education is able to help in not only academic progression for your child, but also in other aspects, such as extracurricular and course selection through our college counseling service. If you happen to have any questions and / or inquiries, feel free to reach us through the following social media outlets:
Website: www.royaled.net
Phone Number: (818)-275-3424
Facebook: www.facebook.com/royaleducationinc
YouTube: www.youtube.com/royaleducation
