Ahead of the Game? Course-Taking Patterns Under a Math Pathways Reform
Huffaker, E., Novicoff, S., & Dee, T. S. · 2025
grade Dlongitudinalindependentfailed
Sample
SFUSD cohorts pre/post the 2014 reform
Population
San Francisco USD high schoolers (delay of Algebra I to 9th grade for all).
Design
Descriptive cohort analysis; no causal identification. The mirror image of algebra-for-all.
Key findings
Uniform DELAY fails like uniform acceleration: AP math participation fell ~15%, gaps didn't close, and high-resource families bought workarounds. No achievement gains were ever demonstrated. Sister study (Sequoia Union): placing weak 9th graders INTO algebra WITH support worked — support at the right level, not sequence manipulation, is the active ingredient.
Genetic confound
Sequencing rules cannot suppress ability/family-investment differences; the gap reproduced one level up.
Replication notes
The SFUSD board itself restored 8th-grade algebra (Feb 2024); an advisory ballot measure then passed ~82%. The claimed equity successes never survived independent data scrutiny (advocacy repeat-rate claims traced to a changed classification definition).
DOI / URL
10.3102/0013189X241309642
Effects
| Outcome | Metric | Value | Measure | Timing | Vs | Horizon | Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AP math participation | pp | -6 (~15% relative), concentrated in AP Calculus; affluent families routed around via paid acceleration | standardized | 4-7yr post | business-as-usual | over-2yr | attainment |
| Ethnoracial gaps in advanced course-taking (the reform's target) | change | no meaningful narrowing | standardized | 4-7yr post | business-as-usual | over-2yr | attainment |
Cited by
- Ability grouping and tracking — four practices, four verdictsmoderate supportconf: highgc: low
- Algebra timing — acceleration mandates, delay mandates, and readiness-based placementmixedconf: highgc: low