The California State Board of Education approved a new math framework on July 12 that has generated controversy. Critics argue that the framework promotes teaching political activism to children instead of focusing on math skills and standards.

The following report is by The Epoch Times:

The framework, outlined in a 1,000-page guidance document, underwent four years of revision and three drafts based on public feedback.

The critics claim that the framework incorporates concepts of social justice, political activism, and environmental justice into the math curriculum. They argue that the emphasis on these topics detracts from the mastery of math skills.

On the other hand, proponents, such as Mary Nicely, the state’s chief deputy superintendent of public instruction, believe that the framework provides equitable access to math instruction.

The framework has struck a great balance in new ways to engage students in developing a love for math while supporting those on an accelerated path.

Our State Superintendent is a champion of equity and excellence, and it is our core mission that every child—regardless of race, ZIP code, or background—has access to a quality education.

Ms. Nicely said in a statement. 

The guidance outlines key strategies such as structuring math instruction around integrated “big ideas,” emphasizing problem-solving and critical thinking, connecting math to real-world applications, incorporating culturally relevant content, fostering inquiry-based learning, and promoting fluency in math concepts and algorithms.

Opponents of the framework, represented by SaveMath.net, founded by private math tutor and former teacher Michael Malione, raise concerns about the lack of vetting for the concept of “big ideas” and the limited involvement of individuals with advanced math degrees in its development.

Mr. Malione argues on his website that the framework’s focus on “social justice” will harm students and that it devotes too little attention to math content standards.

Typically, a curriculum framework would orient around the content standards regarding when and how they should be taught—to provide guidance to educators, parents, and textbook publishers. The SFR draft framework does not.

He states on his website.

Mr. Malione points out that the framework promotes the use of math to explore concepts of fairness in relation to various social issues and encourages student political activism. It also emphasizes racial justice, equity, gender inclusivity, and trauma-informed pedagogy in math education.

One would think the proposed math framework would focus on describing how to convey the required math subject content in detail, but unfortunately, it does not.

The state’s framework from 2013, by contrast, devotes 66 percent “of its total text (approximately 7,200/10,900 lines of text) to implementing math content standards.”

His website states.

The California State Board of Education states that the framework aims to align math concepts across grade levels, ensure equal access to high school math pathways, provide multiple approaches to support student progress, expand course options, and develop data literacy skills.

Linda Darling-Hammond, president of the California State Board of Education, praised the framework for its focus on excellence with equity.

Change is imperative, she believes, as the United States has been ineffective and inequitable in teaching math.

“We are one of the lower-achieving countries—and California is below the national average in its achievement in mathematics,” Ms. Darling-Hammon said, adding that this is an “area of great need, and change is imperative.”

The same old, same old will not get us to a new place.

Ms. Darling-Hammond added.

On July 13, 2021, more than 1,000 people, including math and science professors, business professionals, and venture capitalists, signed an open letter from the Independent Institute to Gov. Gavin Newsom expressing concerns about certain elements of an earlier version of the framework. That letter appeared to force revisions to parts of the framework.

Although revisions have been made to the framework, critics argue that it still maintains an emphasis on social justice principles, which they believe introduces political agendas into math teaching and may have detrimental effects. They claim that the framework replaces the traditional focus on math with a politicized approach.

It replaces a focus on ‘math class’ with something more akin to a sociology class, adopting a politicized stance of learning and applying math in a one-sided interpretation.

Mr. Malione states on his website.

According to Bill Evers, director of the Center on Educational Excellence at the Independent Institute, the framework remained highly politicized after an earlier version was revised.

In a previous statement to The Epoch Times, Mr. Evers said he believes that the curriculum emphasizes political and teaching dogma, with math problems still framed within social and environmental contexts.

They still want the teachers to be social justice warriors themselves, and they want them to turn out new social justice warriors and environmental activists.

He said.

AUTHOR COMMENTARY

Seems par for the course as this nation continues to rapidly erode away into obscurity and nothingness, guaranteeing that the children will forcibly be made only dumber.

For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.

Jeremiah 4:22

[7] Who goeth a warfare any time at his own charges? who planteth a vineyard, and eateth not of the fruit thereof? or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock? [8] Say I these things as a man? or saith not the law the same also? [9] For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen? [10] Or saith he it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope. (1 Corinthians 9:7-10).

The WinePress needs your support! If God has laid it on your heart to want to contribute, please prayerfully consider donating to this ministry. If you cannot gift a monetary donation, then please donate your fervent prayers to keep this ministry going! Thank you and may God bless you.

CLICK HERE TO DONATE

3 Comments

  • They’ve got their WEF leaders in the bag & in place. Now their armies are to be selected, sorted & prepared. The rest dumbed down, demoralized, seduced & tempted into sin, used by the hypocrites & by unfaithful brethren. Their end is sure, but the Lord sorts differently & according to the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ according to the scriptures, & his judgment is perfect, his way is right.

    Brownshirts and Red Scarf/Green people, jihadists w/ their whatever they call their own masonic black & white checked rag of the land that never existed save when the Roman emperor decided not to call it Judea anymore, in the making. Wordsmiths & philosophers playing their sophist games. As the sodomite masters & philosophers describe it: Beefsteak & Watermelon: one is brown on the outside& red in the middle, & one green on the outside, red in the middle. Black&white checkerboard scarfs, now who could that be?

    But the word of the Lord w/ Isaiah had their number well before that, & this has happened before, the stage is being set for that final fulfillment & showdown at Armageddon. The people of the Dragon are building their ‘one road’ as part of the one world order, w/ Rome for now in covert concordat, one day openly, but then the antichrist who must have all glory will doublecross the consort whore (as surely as any Pope did in the Dark Age), & the events of Revelation 18 will come to pass.

    Rome did that, too, remember? First for war and then for bureaucratic control, moving goods etc. But the Gospel went out, too. And not just there, but even along the Silk Road. There is no new thing under the sun.

    Isa 14:29 Rejoice not thou, whole Palestina, because the rod of him that smote thee is broken: for out of the serpent’s root shall come forth a cockatrice, and his fruit shall be a fiery flying serpent.

    Isa 14:31 Howl, O gate; cry, O city; thou, whole Palestina, art dissolved: for there shall come from the north a smoke, and none shall be alone in his appointed times.

    Heads up, people using Swordsearcher software: the notes are already in place for their ‘change’, not yet inserted into the text. And searching ‘Palestina’ to get the exact reference brought no results, but Joel 3:4 with the modern spelling of Palestine, is the word of the Lord, amazing?

    Searching ‘thou Palestina’ brought what I was looking for, but that’s a little troubling.

    Joel 3:4 Yea, and what have ye to do with me, O Tyre, and Zidon, and all the coasts of Palestine? will ye render me a recompence? and if ye recompense me, swiftly and speedily will I return your recompence upon your own head;

    You can download the free purebiblesearch software, if interested in any online version, for now. Double check & cross reference as they get more brazen with their perversions. Did you see the new ‘Legacy Standard Bible’, the LSB? (I call it the Catholic LSD Bible in reminiscence of their covert crap activities…but as I said, the Lord has their number & vengeance is his.

    It’s trademark has the Roman laurel crown. Watch! I realize there are times that it’s convenient in witnessing, at work etc, but a hard copy Bible, as good a paper King James Bible as you can afford is a must.

    As for math, this is what the new math has been all along. In internal strife amongst the dueling nicolaitans & philosophers historically, Charlotte Iserbyt documented how they did it, up to the point of her writing, in the ‘Deliberate Dumbing Down of America’…and documented the mathematicians who were appalled. You must teach your children arithmetic, & math, if you can. Those Catholic & Masonic etc job-networks & ‘leg’s up’ are bad now, squeezing out a lot of otherwise qualifying people, but they’re going to get much worse if we linger here long. Still, there are times REAL skill & spiritual insight is required: ie Daniel.

    Faking math gets dangerous in real world application. Quantum, existence of spiritual realm is evidenced mathematically, but the ignorant & superstitious will not know. Lying signs & wonders. Some faked by men & technology, but not all, & many will be surprised, I believe, in the atheist hypocrite wing, when they realize what God is doing to them, & how he gave them over & allowed it to his Roman 8:28 ends. They thought it was all about them.

    Psalm 57:6 They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves. Selah.

  • It’s math, ya know; 2+2=4 and 4×4= 16 and all the rest; add, subtract, divide and % of. What in the ever living… does social justice have to do with anything; “oh, these people are disadvantaged because they are poor, marginalized and suffering…. so they can’t add or subtract, because they only can… blah, blah, blah” if it was any deeper we would an excavator to dig up the amount of bull dung their spewing

Leave a Comment

×