Algebra: The Ongoing Public Debate

The Eduwonk blog has an interesting overview of some of the recent news and legislation involving he ongoing debate of whether to continue teaching algebra to students.

For those of us heavily involved in mathematics education, it's surprising to read comments like this one from Nell Noddings, author of Happiness and Education:

I have come to suspect that teaching everyone algebra and geometry is both wasteful and inconsiderate. The effort required from teachers wastes energy that could be spent on those interested and talented in mathematics.

But consider this counter argument from Hyman Bass of the University of Michigan:

Suppose someone said that reading and writing are unequally achieved, and that some groups cannot read or write as well as others, and so therefore insisting on reading and writing is discriminatory?

I'm sure the debate will continue. Of course, we are of the mind that new technology, like ExploreLearning's Gizmos, when combined with good teaching, will help eliminate the gap between those who "get" algebra and those who don't.