Pressure.
I was tutoring at a youth center yesterday and two high school freshmen walked in. One I had met before when he brought his math in for me to help him with. The other guy was his cousin. From the look on both their faces, you would have thought they had found out the way to the Holy Grail. I, apparently, had all answers to math.
Gulp.
The good news is- I was able to explain the math.
The bad news is- both these boys were put in math classes where they did not belong. Having never seen the inside of a pre-algebra book, they had been stuck in Algebra I because there was "no place else to put them." When there mother complained, the administration threatened to put them in Geometry! Geometry??? Geometry is 90% algebra! you know....c sq = a sq + b sq and so on?
So, back they went to Algebra 1.
And they are failing. And my tutoring them one day a week in second semester is not going to change a thing.
And administration shrugs.
And teachers throw their hands up.
And the kids fight to keep their hope alive- showing up once a week to ask me to unravel the mystery of letters mixed with numbers and people who just do not seem to care.
