College students are struggling with basic math, with many stuck at a basic high school level. Meanwhile, their professors are blaming the Chinese coronavirus pandemic for massive academic setbacks. The Math chair of Temple University says, “It’s not just that they’re unprepared, they’re almost damaged. I hate to use that term, but they’re so behind.”
Institutions of higher learning are grappling with major academic setbacks that stem from the Chinese coronavirus pandemic, according to a report by the Associated Press.
Engineering and biology majors are struggling to grasp fractions and exponents at many universities, and more students are being placed into pre-college math, starting a semester or more behind their programs’ requirements.
Colleges are predominantly blaming the disruptions caused by the pandemic, which have resulted in a significant decline in math and reading scores.
While reading scores plummeted on the national test known as NAEP, math scores fell even further, dropping by margins that have not been seen in decades.
George Mason University says fewer of its students have been able to get into calculus, the first college-level course for some majors, and that more of them are failing.
Temple University math professor Jessica Babcock said she realized the severity of the problem last year, when she graded quizzes in her intermediate algebra class, which is the lowest option for STEM majors.
“I graded a whole bunch of papers in a row. No two papers had the same answer, and none of them were correct,” Babcock said. “It was a striking moment of, like, wow — this is significant and deep.”
Brian Rider, Temple University’s math chair, says “It’s not just that they’re unprepared, they’re almost damaged,” adding, “I hate to use that term, but they’re so behind.”
Before the Wuhan virus pandemic, about 800 students per semester were placed into the preliminary class, which is the equivalent of ninth grade math. By 2021, that number reportedly inflated to nearly 1,400.
Researchers say math learning suffered for a few reasons. One, math is an intensely hands-on subject, and it’s difficult to translate to virtual classrooms. Two, when students fall behind in math, it can go unnoticed for a year or more as they move on to other areas in mathematics.
Moreover, parents are typically more comfortable helping their kids with reading rather than math during in-home learning sessions.
But what has become a persistent problem at some college has reportedly just been a blip for others.
At Iowa State University, for example, students entering in 2020 were far more likely to be placed in lower-level math classes, and grades fell. Eric Weber, math department chair, said that while that group of students has had continuous trouble, numbers improved for the following year’s class.
AP contributed to this report
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