Math crisis began a decade ago and has only worsened, report says

LA Times via Yahoo ^ | 9/23/25 | Emma Gallegos

[DallasBiff]

American students are experiencing a math crisis marked by a decline in scores that began over a decade ago and rapidly accelerated in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, a new report shows

Almost 4 in 10 eighth-graders scored below basic in math on the Nation’s Report Card, leading to the lowest scores since the test began in the early 2000s. The gap between high- and low-performing students is higher than ever. Students who saw strong gains in math since the early 2000s — girls, low-income students, Black and Latino students, students with disabilities, and English learners — have seen their stunning progress erased.

---

TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Education
KEYWORDS: arth; math; obamalegacy

[DallasBiff]

I was taught basic math, 1+1=2. Went through algebra and calculus, but basic math is the way to go in life

[ealgeone]

Goes back much further; back to when “new math” was rolled out in the early 70s.

[Tell It Right]

I was taught to respect math mainly from my father, something that most kids in “high-poverty” areas don’t have.

[Texas Eagle]

A decade ago??? More like 40 years ago.

[nickcarraway]

The math crisis has been going on a long time. And it's getting worse.

And the COVID lockdowns only made it worse. After the lockdowns, only 20% of children are proficient in math. But at least that's more than half.

[fwdude]

Obama’s legacy.

[cgbg]

I thought math was racist.

What is the problem?

Lol.

[Mouton]

Just need the right test:

Name:__________________________ Gang:__________________________

1. Johnny has an AK-47 with an 80-round clip. If he misses 6 out of 10 shots and shoots 13 times at each drive-by shooting, how many drive-by shootings can he attempt before he has to reload?

2. Jose has 2 ounces of cocaine and he sells an 8-ball to Jackson for $320 and 2 grams to Billy for $85 per gram. What is the street value of the balance of the cocaine if he doesn’t cut it?

3. Rufus is pimping for three girls. If the price is $65 for each trick, how many tricks will each girl have to turn so Rufus can pay for his $800-per-day crack habit?

4. Jarone want to cut his 1/2 pound of heroin to make 20% more profit. How many ounces of cut will he need?

5. Willie gets $200 for stealing a BMW, $50 for a Chevy, and $100 for a 4X4. If he has stolen 2 BMWs, 3 4X4s, how many Chevies will he have to steal to make $800?

6. Raoul is in prison for 6 years for murder. He got $10,000 for the hit. If his common law wife is spending $100 per month, how much money will be left when he gets out of prison.

[cgbg]

Teaching math is easy.

Give a piece of candy if the kids get the right answer—an electric shock if they get the wrong answer.

We can do this!

Lol.

[FES0844]

Common Core destroyed math.

[Getready]

I was put in “advanced” new math in early 1960’. So abstract for a young dude ..destroyed any interest I might have had .took me till college to get a grip on it
Math scores down,, but all scores are down...just ask AI for the answer...stop watching TV and movies, and the bad stuff on the net for starters...

[Leaning Right]

Retired teacher here. I taught math, among other things.

I could mention the usual problems: lack of classroom discipline, social promotions, etc. And they’re all true.

Here’s one more: over-reliance on calculators.

Back when I first started teaching, students had the times tables memorized. And we taught things like estimating, adding fractions by hand, and use of logarithms.

That’s all gone now. In the district where I taught, central administrators actually forbade teachers from telling students to memorize the times tables. Everything HAD to be done by calculator.

So now we have young people who can’t immediately tell you what 8x9 is.

Crazy.

[ClearCase_guy]

GMTA

I remember New Math when it was still new in the 60s. Awful stuff.

[9YearLurker]

Exactly. It has been a precipitous decline for decades now. Complete ignorance and incompetence at least is the bottom that can’t go lower.

[proxy_user]

“Don’t worry, the payments are only $372 dollars a month - just sign here.

[allendale]

Could be that 40% of the current student population simply do not have the neurological circuits to do math.

[PGR88]

Union-controlled Urban Public Schools + migrants. Yes, results will continue to crash.

My kid’s private Christian school doesn’t participate in any state surveys

They’ve got several kids in each high school grade taking an advanced math course offered by the State University for gifted/ambitious high school kids in the County.

[jimfr]

New math was being taught in the 60’s. My dad who almost did not graduate from high school saved me from new math. He grounded me in the digital system and basic arithmetic. He worked in a bank and brought home each year the test they gave to job interviewees, consisted of basic arithmetic including problems involving monetary problems. It does not take a college degree to teach grade school or high school.

[algore]

when I was in school we had flash cards and calculators were banned because at $200 not all the families could afford them.

I brought in a slide rule and they banned that too, Those Facists.

when my kids went to school they taught math a totally different way than I learned no more adding large numbers from right to left and carry the one, but somehow from left to right which I never understood.

[TexasGator]

“Goes back much further; back to when “new math” was rolled out in the early 70s.”

Goes back to the 60’s.