Former SM East student Clara Burdick took Calculus BC as a senior. She’s now a freshman in college studying to teach math. Yet, her seventh-grade sister, a “freaking genius,” is slotted in a lower math track than Clara was. Not because of her abilities, but because of the sixth-grade Algebra 1 Placement Exam, implemented five years ago. “When we keep lowering the standards, and we keep expecting less and less and less out of our students, they just aren’t able to even reach their full potential because they aren’t being expected to,” Clara said. The placement exam follows the national trend of math detracking — the process of placing students of differing abilities in the same math class by eliminating advanced tracks. To read more, click the link in bio. #storybylibbymarsh #socialmediabysydneyeck #designbysophiabrockmeier