O The story of K-12 education in mathematics and science in Connecticut contains both bad news and good news. So I then proved it by mathematical induction. When we realize that mathematical induction, as a method of rigorous proof, is but dimly understood by many college students, it is heartening news indeed to find an 8th grader knowing when and how to apply the method. Despite that commitment, the goal is not easy to achieve, for several reasons. For one thing, societal problems impinge on what schools can accomplish.
Mobility is high.
In some urban schools, none of the students in a class early in September are still in that school the following June. The societal problems noted in the previous paragraph are principally associated with poverty. But there is another problem, not related to poverty, that also affects education. Many people recognize education for its credentialing value, but they don't esteem education for its own sake, nor do they appreciate that real education requires sustained hard work. Education is not generally assigned high value, even by parents who have had much schooling.