Blog Seventeen - A Quick Overview of Patterns Throughout Mathematics Education in the US

A quick journey through the history of American mathematics will reveal several patterns that occur repeatedly across centuries.

To start, in colonial America, education was primarily meant to train clerks, which heavily influenced the curriculum. It is interesting to note that the practice of school curriculum being influenced by the job position that is most needed at the time continues well into the future. Education at this time included basic arithmetic before it was replaced with the more religious influence of the Puritans. 

Yet, Ben Franklin’s call for subjects with more practical value led to the curriculum taught at the Philadelphia Academy, which emphasized accounting and arithmetic as subjects that had value in modern society at the time. This takes an approach where subjects are judged based on their intrinsic value to the real world (for example, teaching computer science in modern-day schools since it is a revolutionary new field). Again, this practice of changing the syllabus to fit the skills needed at the time continues. 

A brief analysis of these first two “chunks” of education in the US will reveal a common pattern of prioritizing subjects that have value to the community as of then. A possible reasoning behind this is that education was considered preparation for a career in the future, which is why the syllabus clearly reflected that. It also brings into question why we established schools in the first place. This is also a worthy question to ponder even today. Why do schools and education exist? Is it to allow students to succeed in life, or for them to succeed in a career?

Notably, in the early 1700s, many American universities were set on teaching the most difficult topics, such as learning ancient languages. This changed when Harvard began to require arithmetic to enroll in the college. Consequently, many schools began to offer arithmetic, and as Harvard began to hike the standards to Algebra in 1820 and Geometry in 1844, schools continued to follow. This is definitely a testament to how much college admissions influenced the curriculum, even in the 1700s and 1800s. Many argue that college admissions also have a role in the curriculum of 2024. For example, advanced pathways are taught to many students who enroll to seem more appealing to colleges. Or the gradual normalization of taking calculus and advanced topics in public high schools. 

The most well-known and arguably most profound change in mathematics education in the US is the “New Math” movement of the mid-1900s. The goal of this was to promote conceptual understanding of mathematics, primarily in elementary and secondary schools, and teach math as a series of interconnected axioms rather than a series of drills. Yet, it is also known as one of the most spectacular failures of an education movement, even making the Time magazine list of “100 Worst Ideas Of The Century” in 1999.

World War II emphasized the need for science and mathematics education, and the nation rushed to make them a priority. Yet, concern was growing that the existing curriculum was not fit for the task. Along with a growing sense of patriotism, newfound expectations were placed on the youth of that time, expectations to advance the nation’s scientific endeavors and to bring pride to the country. This led to a rush to change and improve the STEM curriculum so that it gave the nation’s students an edge over others. In other words, New Math. One of the main reasons New Math was said to have been unsuccessful was that it seemed to take an abstract approach to mathematics, which both confused students and did not give them the perspective of mathematics as a cumulative subject. Ultimately, this caused weak foundations in math, leading to the system's collapse.

After this comes the next major mathematics revelation: Common Core standards. However, those require a separate analysis on their own.

A few continuous patterns can be seen when exploring the pathway that mathematics education in the United States has taken. For one, the school curriculum responding to whatever position is needed most at the time. Such as clerks and scientists. Another pattern is the priority that college acceptances have on what material is being taught, as seen even a few centuries ago.

There were also some interesting changes, primarily as to how mathematics was viewed by society in general. From a subject where only the basics were necessary, to a means of getting into Harvard, to something that can actually be used and applied somewhere else. Mathematics education was and still is extremely dynamic and will likely continue to be.