Supervisor pushes to bring Algebra 1 back to eighth graders
(Left to right) Attorney Christine Linnenbach, activist Rex Ridgeway and Friends of Lowell Vice President Alisa Farenzena discuss plans together as they descend the stairs in City Hall following a Board of Supervisors’ meeting on Sept. 26, 2023 in San Francisco, Calif.
Dan Hernandez / Journalism 300, SF State
Public school students may soon be eligible for enrollment in Algebra 1 courses before high school once again following a ballot measure introduced by Supervisor Joel Engardio on Tuesday at the Board of Supervisors meeting.
The measure would reverse a 2014 decision that was implemented to delay Algebra 1 until the ninth grade over concerns that not enough students were prepared to take the course. The policy has been the subject of controversy where lawsuits, a research study and officials argued that it was proven to be ineffective for enrollment and raising grades.
"A policy against eighth grade algebra is a big factor when families decide to leave public schools when their child reaches middle school," Engardio said on Tuesday. He noted that many parents were pulling their children from public schools and turning to private schools as a result.
Not providing Algebra 1 earlier in the curriculum places students in the San Francisco Unified School District at a competitive disadvantage to their counterparts in other school districts where the course is offered as early as the seventh grade, according to Engardio's blog post.
Engardio expressed that children who are eager to move ahead in mathematics should not have to be held back and punished. He spoke about the experience of student Joselyn Marroquin, who attended Lincoln High School and was affected by the policy. Marroquin's grandfather, Rex Ridgeway who is a proponent for eighth grade algebra, attended the meeting.
Ridgeway did the work-around path that some families do. He paid $850 for his granddaughter to take an Algebra 1 summer course so that she could be on track for Calculus by her senior year without the pressure of doubling up on math courses beforehand.
"Families who don't know or don't have the resources aren't going to do the work-around because they don't know or they don't have the finances to be able to do it," Ridgeway said on Tuesday. He shared his concern that the growing inequity between families that can support pushing their children forward in education and those who cannot might get be left behind.
The alternative for many families who cannot afford to pay for accelerated courses is to get their students enrolled in a compression course offered by SFUSD that combines Algebra 2 and Pre-Calculus into one. Engardio criticized this course because it does not meet the admissions standards of the University of California, further hindering students' chances for higher education.
"I think that when we intend something and it doesn't result it, we should have the courage to say, 'hey this didn't work out, let's try something else,' and I think this is where we are," Supervisor Myrna Melgar said. She voiced her support following Engardio's introduction of the measure.
Supervisors Ahsha Safaí, Catherine Stefani and Matt Dorsey are also sponsoring the ballot measure.
The measure will go onto the March 5 ballot in 2024 for San Francisco voters to decide on. The literature will only urge SFUSD to offer Algebra 1 by the eighth grade.