The x Files

PZ sends this Washington Post article about a quick fix for math teachers who don't have the skills they need to teach algebra to elementary students--a math consultant in the school who works with them so that they understand the concepts before they teach them. Sounds like a good idea, especially if it's paid for with an NSF grant. Here is the study cited, which says, among other things, that

Future U.S. middle school teachers' mathematics knowledge was generally weaker than that of future teachers in South Korea, Taiwan, Germany, and in some areas, Bulgaria. Taiwanese and South Korean future teachers were the top performers in all five areas of mathematics knowledge.

Bulgaria?

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