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American College Students Fall Far Behind in Mathematics and Science

It’s no secret that our elementary schools are far less adept than many of their overseas counterparts at extolling the virtues of mathematics and science to students, which makes a recent report on National Academics from former Lockheed Martin chief Norman Augustine on the state of collegiate math and science programs no great surprise.

According to the report, increased research funding increases, math and science education measures and tax-credit changes are needed to keep the nation competitive in math and sciences. In truth, financial considerations are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to diagnosing the full extent of the problem.

Today, children born in the U.S. are simply far less interested in math and sciences than children born in other countries, which has little to do with geography and everything to do with culture. While there are exceptions, the general population of the nation has afforded decreasing value to mathematics and science, instead opting to focus on more liberal arts related fields of academia. While enrollment in arts and humanities, information technology and business degree programs grows exponentially, math and sciences are little more than an afterthought to most students entering college.

At the heart of the problems is a culture who takes pride in not only avoiding mathematics and science, but being relatively smug about doing so. Children are following their parents lead and the results are evident. A recent Raytheon Corporation survey of 1,000 11-to-13-year-olds found that 84% said they would “rather clean their room, eat their vegetables, go to the dentist or take out the garbage than learn math or science.” Last year, 12th-graders tested well below the international average for 21 countries in mathematics and science in nationally administered exams. Worse yet, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, roughly one-third of the fourth-graders and one-fifth of the eighth-graders cannot perform basic mathematical computations.

Perhaps what’s needed is not a policy change but a cultural change: one in which our society takes greater responsibility for the future of our children. Much like environmental issues, what may seem far away today can be a source of problems for future generations. Only by changing our collective attitude toward these problems can we expect to solve them.