Tell it to me straight about algebra

[o_mom]

I think there are many reasons to go ahead with Algebra. I have seen many already, but to add to it... If she does not do well, she can repeat it as a freshman, and it never appears on her high school transcript. If she takes it as a freshman and does not do well, then you are looking at re-taking over a summer and it will definitely show on the transcript.

[gatorsmom]

Ok, I’ll be the dissenting voice here. I’m not up for an argument or trying to derail the thread. I agree that much can change between middle school and high school and even college. But I think it makes sense to be thinking about college now and I’ll tell you why. By 11th grade she should have a good idea of what fields interest her and where her strengths lie. This will help her choose colleges that are strong in the fields that interest her. In middle school she can start heading down the paths of extra curricular activities she enjoys too. I’ve read that college recruiters can tell on applications when a kid started joining in 11th grade lots of groups to beef up their resume. Starting earlier can allow them to slowly explore more fields and industries and slowly develop the extracurricular activities they enjoy. For example, most of the Boy Scouts who have earned Eagle tank have done so by 10th grade. They start early in middle school because it’s a difficult achievement frequently derailed by cars, girls and jobs once they get to junior year. My daughter is going into 7th grade and is already in the intermediate level of ballet. By her junior year, it’s very competitive to get the dance roles the girls want. I’m just saying, it’s good to always be exploring new things but it doesn’t hurt in some cases to start getting serious in middle school.

As for Algebra, my DS2 just finished algebra 1 in 8th grade. My twins heading into 7th will take prealgebra this year at our school. Alegbra is pretty standard. Even if your daughter knows math isn’t her thing and that she won’t be taking Calculus in high school, some colleges programs may require a math-related class or 2. By not taking the basic high school math courses she may be ruling herself out early.

[ezcc]

Also, 8th grade Algebra does not necessarily mean calculus- I took calculus in high school, but DS who is a very good student (including math) will take statistics senior year. He is likely heading down a humanities path but I don't think colleges will care that he hasn't taken calculus. I would follow the school's recommendation unless she has strong objections.

[westwoodmom04]

I would definitely have her take it, especially since she excels in math even if she doesn’t have a math “brain.” Algebra 1 in 8th grade is standard track in our area, the advanced track is either Algebra 2 or geometry, depending on the school.
Something else to consider is that math can affect science placement. At my kid’s school, only kids on the advanced math track are permitted to take honors science classes.

[mmsmom]

If she wants a top tier college then she will need to take Calculus. We too are in the position of having to make these decisions and although I agree it is early to think about it, math is the once course that does need to be planned based on college intentions. DC are in private school and the college conversations start casually in 7th. Counselors shared a list of last year senior class and where they went to college based on those who took calculus and those who did not. Bottom line is while there are plenty of very good options if you do not take calculus, if you want a “top” college you will need calculus in high school.

[Melaine]

Thanks for this thread, super helpful as we’ve been talking about whether or not to have the girls complete prealg this summer or do it in 8th. I’m kind of disinterested in throwing more work into anything at this time but I do think it would be better for them to be in algebra 1 this fall.

[Globetrotter]

Her testing and math grades don’t indicate any problems to me. I would definitely have her take algebra next year to be on track for calculus in 12th grade. That seems To be the current minimum expectation, though of course there are exceptions. Here most of the mathy kids take it by 11th grade.
If your kid does some extraordinary extracurricular activities , no college is going to punish them for not taking calculus in 12th grade, but for most of our kids it is a good idea if they’re looking into a competitive college.

[smilequeen]

I hated math but I was good at it. I was very into science though and the two kind of go hand in hand in many ways...I know one of the pre-reqs for DS in honors science was that he was also in honors math. I think it’s best to just stay on track and it sounds like that’s what she’s ready for. I will say that my strong math loving kid found honors algebra to be a challenge. He did fine in it, it was just more work than he was used to doing...it’s a shift in thinking and he never had to put any effort into math before that. The teacher also taught it as a high school class even though it was in middle school. And he hates asking for help so that was fun...but he did fine and even if he hadn’t, middle school grades are meaningless in the long run.

[amyx4]

I have college kids.

At our StateU, the students need to have had Calculus in high school (doesn't matter if it's honors or AP) to be admitted to the Engineering or Nursing majors. So, if your student doesn't take Calc in high school, then they'll get accepted into the StateU but they won't be in their major that first semester. What I've heard is the student takes all the same classes as the other students in the major, except they take pre-calc instead of Cal I.

During orientation at the StateU, all the Engineering and Nursing majors that took Calc in high school are strongly encouraged to take Calc I fall of freshman year. Even the AP students are strongly discouraged from moving into Calc II.

Finally, one of mine had a friend that didn't take AlgI during 8th grade due to changing schools. So, the summer between Junior/Senior year of high school, he took the pre-calc class at the local community college. Then he took Cal I during his senior year of high school. He went on to a private college that required Calc in high school to be admitted into the Engineering dept.

[carolinamama]

I don't see any reason for her to not take Algebra 1 in 8th. She has proven that she's capable and it gives her more options down the road in high school when she has a clearer idea of college aspirations. In our area, 8th grade Algebra 1 would be an advanced track, but not the most advanced (Algebra 2) so I don't think it's too much.