Head of U of W comments on Calculus

Head of UW slams math plan
Keep calculus in Ontario schools, Johnston urges
LUISA D'AMATO

(Dec 23, 2005)
Ontario's high school graduates are already slipping in their math abilities -- and the government's decision to drop calculus from the high school curriculum puts these students in even more peril, says the president of the University of Waterloo.
David Johnston has written Education Minister Gerard Kennedy, warning of the university's "great concern" if calculus is dropped from math courses next year, as is planned.
He said there is less and less "hard math content" in Ontario high school math courses as it is, and that is hurting the students' ability to compete with other students from across Canada and globally.
"We're reducing the rigour in our educational system," he said in an interview yesterday.
Before eliminating the fifth year of high school in 2003, "Ontario could rightfully boast that its mathematics curriculum was second to none in Canada," says his letter, sent this week to Kennedy and Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty.
The University of Waterloo has the best reputation of any university in Canada and is also among the top few for its academic and other services for students, according to the annual Maclean's magazine ranking.
Its students routinely distinguish themselves in international competitions in math and computer science.
The university also encourages elementary and high-school students to challenge themselves in math by organizing competitions and other enrichment activities for them.
Some university professors have suggested that it's best to wait until university to teach calculus.
But Johnston strongly disagrees. He said it's crucial for students to take calculus in high school if they want to continue science or math-related studies after graduation.
It's too fundamental a discipline to wait until university, he said.
"Engineering and science programs (especially physics) want students to have calculus in high school because they rely on that foundation in early courses," said his letter to Kennedy.
"With other provinces offering it for good students, Ontario's students will be at a disadvantage when applying here or elsewhere."
Johnston's letter adds to the growing chorus of concern that the government's plan to remove calculus is being made too quickly and without enough public debate.
The Council of Ontario Universities and the Ontario Society of Professional Engineers have also both written to the minister and his staff to express concern about the speed of the proposed changes.
Locally, high school math teachers feel so strongly that they are designing their own course combining advanced algebra and calculus.
If accepted by the ministry and school board, it would be offered at public high schools in Waterloo Region, but nowhere else.
Approval for such a course takes up to two years.
Although government representatives have said nothing has been decided yet, next fall's course calendar has already been changed, in anticipation of the proposals being enacted.
This year's Grade 12 Advanced Functions and Introductory Calculus university preparation course has been renamed simply Advanced Functions for next year.
According to a ministry memo to school boards, the course description says students will "develop facility with the concepts and skills needed for the study of calculus in a variety of university courses."
But they will not receive instruction in calculus, as they now do.
The proposed removal of calculus not only handicaps our own students, but also "sends the wrong signal" to other countries, Johnston contends.
It makes Ontario a less attractive place for achievement-minded immigrants and foreign students to settle, he said.
ldamato@therecord.com