Mathematics, reading skills in unprecedented decline in teenagers

[IIVI]

Scary thing is academics is starting to get more like the NBA. Kids that come from smarter parents are dominating.

It's actually crazy when you see what level the top kids are on these days. It's not surprising that employers were filling this person's email account up with offers when the CS market hit a major downturn while everyone else was trying to find work. It really just goes to show the tiers of this world:


The person in the video did all of this by the time she was 17, then eventually graduated from Caltech:

Academics:​

1. 4.83 Weighted GPA (out of 5.0) and 4.0 Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0).
2. Valedictorian - Ranked 1st out of 435 students.
3. ACT Score: 35.
4. SAT Math II Subject Test: 800 (Perfect score).
5. SAT Chemistry Subject Test: 760.
6. AP Exam Scores:
   • 5 on AP Stats, AP Calculus BC, AP Psychology, AP Chemistry.
   • 4 on AP Physics 1, AP Environmental Science, AP Human Geography, AP US History.

Extracurriculars:​

1. Mu Alpha Theta(Math Honor Society):
   • Vice President (Senior year).
   • Secretary (Junior year).
   • Initiated the Remind Account for the club.
   • Won awards in math competitions.
2. Knowledge Bowl:
   • Qualified for state all four years.
3. Science National Honor Society:
   • Member (Junior and Senior years).
4. FIRST Robotics:
   • Participated in Senior year.
5. National Honor Society:
   • Co-President.
   • Initiated projects such as knitting and donating baby hats to hospitals and making blankets for homeless teens.
6. Volunteering:
   • Volunteered at a local hospital for over four years, accumulating over 220 hours.
7. Mathnasium Tutor:
   • Started working as a tutor in 2019.
8. Sports:
   • Volleyball: Played since first/second grade and in competitive club volleyball since sixth grade. Competed in Nationals.
   • Tennis:
     • Varsity player all four years.
     • Regional Champion in freshman year.
     • Competed in state tournaments.
9. YouTube Channel:
   • Runs a YouTube channel with 25,000+ subscribers, collaborating with other creators and singing English translations of K-pop songs (specifically BTS).
   • Collaborated with the app "Next Music."
10. STEM Camps:
    • Participated in an International Girls in STEM Camp, hosting a student from Kazakhstan.
    • Participated in a Cybersecurity camp.

Additional Academic Experiences:​

1. College Courses:
   • Took Calculus III, Differential Equations, and Linear Algebra at a local university due to a lack of higher-level math classes at high school.

She also has a sister who also graduated from Caltech in Chemical Engineering with a 4.0 (which may be the single most difficult degree to get in the world 1/240,000 high school graduates will get this degree) who also has a really popular youtube channel with about half a million subscribers). I found about them looking for study skills content.

What I know about them:
Their parents had a decent hand in teaching them (their dad sounds really good at Math/Science) and I guarantee you her dad knows a whooooole lot more about being a good Mathematician, Scientist and problem solver than her elementary school teachers do. This is what I mean when I say it's becoming more like the NBA with some kids simply having more elite resources: those with STEM professionals as parents are going to get their kids right far beyond any school program can take them. That's why she and her sister took Math courses (Calc 3, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations) up at a University while in high school. Not sure what their mother does, but pretty sure she's smart as well.

So really, it's not only on the schools, it's on the parents who can teach them more than what their teachers can show them. Additionally you need the type of parent who has the time and organizational skills to take them to all of these events: She's at this Science Camp, then that Science camp, then some National Math competition then onto another one all while managing University courses. All at 16 years old.

Like I said, her sister was basically along similar lines, meaning her parents had a hand in this back-to-back, that's not only on the school:

• Academic Achievements:
  • Took multiple AP courses (e.g., AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Calculus BC, AP Physics, etc.).
  • Valedictorian with a GPA of 4.82 weighted, 4.0 unweighted.
  • ACT score of 35, SAT score of 1520.
  • Achieved 5s on seven AP exams.
  • Took advanced college-level courses like Linear Algebra and Multivariable Calculus at UCCS during high school.
• Standardized Test Performance:
  • Scored 36 on ACT Math, 35 on Science and English.
  • Scored 100 on SAT Math, 790 on SAT Chemistry Subject Test, and perfect score in Math II.
• Math Competitions and Honors:
  • Qualified for AIME (American Invitational Mathematics Examination).
  • Winner in multiple math contests (e.g., UNC Math Contest, Colorado Math Olympiad, CSU Pueblo State Math Bowl).
  • National Merit Semifinalist.
• Extracurricular Leadership and Activities:
  • President of Mu Alpha Theta Math Society, led team to first place in state math competition.
  • Participated in the PROMYS (Program in Mathematics for Young Scientists) program, with partial scholarship.
  • President of National Honor Society.
  • Treasurer and Secretary of Spanish Honor Society.
  • Varsity tennis team captain and achieved several athletic awards.
• Work and Volunteering:
  • Math tutor for junior and senior years.
  • Volunteered at a hospital birth center for four years.
• Personal Essays and Experiences:
  • Wrote personal essays focusing on math, confidence, and collaborative experiences, particularly PROMYS.
  • Discussed an ethical dilemma faced in an online linear algebra class.

Then she pulled off a 4.0 at Caltech for it's hardest degree (Chemical Engineering which is basically Electrical Engineering, Physics and Material Science), while playing on their basketball team and doing the Youtube thing.

This is why when you fall behind, you really fall behind.

 

[Givethanks]

I found out one of the school boards stopped giving kids Homework... Apparently there's scientific proof that giving school age children HW was detrimental and actually not helping them learn


Someone on Reddit praised this and said "if my boss gave me homework I wouldn't do it, so why should my kids teacher do it teacher"



I know God damn well parents aren't reading to their kids like that anymore. I see this shyt in real time, my friends who read to their kids every night and have them in the library all the time are succeeding while the ones who just throw them a tablet after school are struggling with mathematics and reading.

Set your kids up for failure breh

 

[IIVI]

I found out one of the school boards stopped giving kids Homework... Apparently there's scientific proof that giving school age children HW was detrimental and actually not helping them learn


Someone on Reddit praised this and said "if my boss gave me homework I wouldn't do it, so why should my kids teacher do it teacher"



I know God damn well parents aren't reading to their kids like that anymore. I see this shyt in real time, my friends who read to their kids every night and have them in the library all the time are succeeding while the ones who just throw them a tablet after school are struggling with mathematics and reading.

Set your kids up for failure breh

Yup. It's not one or the other: school or parents holding 100% responsibility.

Truth is it's probably like 20% school 80% parents.

You can't simply let your kids get taught by strangers (teachers) and expect them to excel. Teachers see new sets of kids every year, can't expect them to do their job to maximum passion and capacity every time if they're being paid peanuts.

Like I said before, you can't expect your kid to know Calculus if the highest Math classes their teachers learned themselves was Algebra II. How do you expect them to have any kind of intrigue or capacity for Math is their parents and teachers are all bad at it?

If you're not going to have the time to teach them, then you better be sending them to a really good private school.

 

[The Pledge]

Education is a pursuit and it's proven there's it's hard to reach anyone that doesn't want to learn.

This.

Can't force anyone to do shyt they don't wanna do, period.

 

[Mowgli]

Scary thing is academics is starting to get more like the NBA. Kids that come from smarter parents are dominating.

It's actually crazy when you see what level the top kids are on these days. It's not surprising that employers were knocking on the person's door when the CS market hit a major downturn while everyone else was trying to find work. It really just goes to show the tiers of this world:


The person in the video did all of this by the time she was 17, then eventually graduated from Caltech:


She also has a sister who also graduated from Caltech in Chemical Engineering with a 4.0 (which may be the single most difficult degree to get in the world 1/240,000 high school graduates will get this degree) who also has a really popular youtube channel with about half a million subscribers). I found about them looking for study skills content.

What I know about them:
Their parents had a decent hand in teaching them (their dad sounds really good at Math/Science) and I guarantee you her dad knows a whooooole lot more about being a good Mathematician, Scientist and problem solver than her elementary school teachers do. This is what I mean when I say it's becoming more like the NBA with some kids simply having more elite resources: those with STEM professionals as parents are going to get their kids right far beyond any school program can take them. That's why she and her sister took Math courses (Calc 3, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations) up at a University while in high school. Not sure what their mother does, but pretty sure she's smart as well.

So really, it's not only on the schools, it's on the parents who can teach them more than what their teachers can show them. Additionally you need the type of parent who has the time and organizational skills to take them to all of these events: She's at this Science Camp, then that Science camp, then some National Math competition then onto another one all while managing University courses. All at 16 years old.

Like I said, her sister was basically along similar lines, meaning her parents had a hand in this back-to-back, that's not only on the school:


This is why when you fall behind, you really fall behind.

Oh my lord

 

[Professor Emeritus]

I found out one of the school boards stopped giving kids Homework... Apparently there's scientific proof that giving school age children HW was detrimental and actually not helping them learn

I'm pretty iffy on the usefulness of regular homework before high school, and the data seems to back up that it doesn't do much.

The issue is not homework, the issue is kids spending time on useful developmental activities (playing with friends, sports, reading, hobbies, etc.) rather than watching TV or staring at their phone. It's probably better for kids to learn to pursue learning on their own in their free time rather than being forced to do it by graded homework. But parents still have to steer them in the right direction in most cases.

 

[The Prince of All Saiyans]

What are you talking about, the article doesn't even mention a giraffe

tf are you talking about giraffes

 

[Professor Emeritus]

Scary thing is academics is starting to get more like the NBA. Kids that come from smarter parents are dominating.

What I know about them:
Their parents had a decent hand in teaching them (their dad sounds really good at Math/Science) and I guarantee you her dad knows a whooooole lot more about being a good Mathematician, Scientist and problem solver than her elementary school teachers do. This is what I mean when I say it's becoming more like the NBA with some kids simply having more elite resources: those with STEM professionals as parents are going to get their kids right far beyond any school program can take them. That's why she and her sister took Math courses (Calc 3, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations) up at a University while in high school. Not sure what their mother does, but pretty sure she's smart as well.

So really, it's not only on the schools, it's on the parents who can teach them more than what their teachers can show them. Additionally you need the type of parent who has the time and organizational skills to take them to all of these events: She's at this Science Camp, then that Science camp, then some National Math competition then onto another one all while managing University courses. All at 16 years old.

Like I said, her sister was basically along similar lines, meaning her parents had a hand in this back-to-back, that's not only on the school:


This is why when you fall behind, you really fall behind.

One of many reasons that I find the "merit-based" obsession for college admissions to be bunk. What's the societal usefulness of clumping together the kids with the most advantages and then giving them more advantages every step of the way?

She also says in the video that she got a 1450 on her SAT and a 32 on her first try at the ACT. Those aren't very impressive scores at all considering her ridiculous background, and is below-average for students admitted into CalTech. But look at how much other stuff she accomplished. So either test scores aren't everything in measuring ability (true), or she actually has below-average ability for a CalTech applicant but made up for it with excessive privilege (also probably true).


If she got a 1450 SAT / 32 ACT with all her upbringing and advantages, then imagine you put her exact same mind in a Black girl growing up in the hood whose parents didn't go to college and who had a long-term substitute in her middle school math class. What is that girl going to get on the SAT when she takes it with no test prep? 1150? Wouldn't have a prayer of getting into CalTech.

 

[IIVI]

One of many reasons that I find the "merit-based" obsession for college admissions to be bunk. What's the societal usefulness of clumping together the kids with the most advantages and then giving them more advantages every step of the way?

She also says in the video that she got a 1450 on her SAT and a 32 on her first try at the ACT. Those aren't very impressive scores at all considering her ridiculous background, and is below-average for students admitted into CalTech. But look at how much other stuff she accomplished. So either test scores aren't everything in measuring ability (true), or she actually has below-average ability for a CalTech applicant but made up for it with excessive privilege (also probably true).


If she got a 1450 SAT / 32 ACT with all her upbringing and advantages, then imagine you put her exact same mind in a Black girl growing up in the hood whose parents didn't go to college and who had a long-term substitute in her middle school math class. What is that girl going to get on the SAT when she takes it with no test prep? 1150? Wouldn't have a prayer of getting into CalTech.

Like her sister explains in her video (didn't share that one), Caltech is mainly interested in her basically acing the Math and Science portions of her exams then doing all the other STEM-related stuff in school and EC's.

I think they saw all the other stuff and basically knew she was legit like that (Calc 3, Linear Algebra, Diff Eq, etc. at a University at 14-15 years old). Having seen adults get torn down in those classes who went on to becoming Engineers, a 14-15 year old doing that stuff is pretty impressive. I know if I saw a 15-year old girl in my college doing that I can tell you straight up they don't belong at my school and were most likely onto bigger and better things (and I go/went to a decent university). It's also why I get amused when I see cats who are in their 20's think they're good at Math and try to impress professors, knowing some of these Stanford educated professors seen what real incredible talent looks like, shyt they probably got imposter syndrome from being around them.

In this case, they both sisters proved they were more than enough for Caltech and excelled there. I know the person in that video works at some big tech company now and like I said her sister basically stopped her profession as an Engineer when her youtube went nuclear and she got on red carpets.

 

[Bugzbunny129]

when all the answers are on google, noone needs to KNOW anything

 

[WIA20XX]

Like her sister explains in her video (didn't share that one), Caltech is mainly interested in her basically acing the Math and Science portions of her exams then doing all the other STEM-related stuff in school and EC's.

I think they saw all the other stuff and basically knew she was legit like that (Diff Eq, Calc 3, etc. at a University at 14-15 years old). Having seen adults get torn down in those classes who went on to becoming Engineers, a 14 year old doing that stuff is pretty impressive. I know if I saw a 14 year old girl in my college doing that I can tell you straight up they don't belong at my school and were most likely onto bigger and better things (and I go/went to a decent university).

In this case, they both proved they were more than enough for Caltech and excelled there. I know the person in that video works at some big tech company now.

She will be a great researcher or employee. That's the path for a lot of Asian Americans. They have the highest income as a result. And that's what Cal Tech and MIT and RPI and other engineering schools produce.

 

[Geek Nasty]

Take ownership of your children's education. Don't assume schools are going to turn your kid into Einstein. Schools don't have the resources for that.

 

[Professor Emeritus]

"';/In this case, they both proved they were more than enough for Caltech and excelled there. I know the person in that video works at some big tech company now.

I wasn't doubting that she was "good enough" for CalTech, especially with that sort of preparation. What I was pointing out is that there are thousands of other kids who are also "good enough" for CalTech, but they don't get in. We talk like test scores are the sole determinant for who is good enough or not when that's a sham.

You remember that charter school in New Orleans that was faking all of their kids' test scores and grades while actually teaching them nothing? Their kids were getting into elite schools all over the country, and many of them did just fine at those schools DESPITE the fact that their resumes were fake. That doesn't mean that school is useless (the kids who spent more time at the charter school did a lot worse than the kids who transferred in from other schools late and just got benefit of the fake scores), but it shows how ability is more broadly distributed than we pretend.


Caltech's admissions officers would be the first to tell you that they reject thousands of students who would do great at their schools. But they still get rejected because there are a limited # of slots, and so they pretend to judge "merit" to determine who gets in when half the time all they're judging is privilege. Why does that girl have more merit than the same girl with the same mind who didn't have the benifit of the same opportunities?



If I had to redesign college admissions, I would junk these fake claims of merit and go to a lottery instead. Each college would set a minimum spectrum of test scores/grades (weighted by course) that they require to qualify for their lottery. They could add quotas for any type of diversity they want (at least X black students, at least X latino students, at least X students from each state, at least X tennis players capable of qualifying for their team, at least X ranked chess players, and so on). Plug that shyt into a computer, enter in all the applications, let the computer reject all applications that don't meet the minimum qualifications to succeed at Caltech and then randomize acceptance to the rest that do.

If you have great stats but are randomly rejected? Congrats, now you know how it feels to have slightly less privilege and be randomly rejected, only now you just blame bad luck rather than a rigged system. You'll be fine, you'll almost certainly get into at least one of MIT, Stanford, Berkeley, etc. anyway. And even if you have to go to a next-tier school, if you're really that good then you'll come out fine and will kick ass there. Why not let the slightly less privileged kids get more of those elite slots?

 

[inndaskKy]

tf are you talking about giraffes

My bad I misinterpreted what you wrote.

 

[IIVI]

I wasn't doubting that she was "good enough" for CalTech, especially with that sort of preparation. What I was pointing out is that there are thousands of other kids who are also "good enough" for CalTech, but they don't get in. We talk like test scores are the sole determinant for who is good enough or not when that's a sham.

You remember that charter school in New Orleans that was faking all of their kids' test scores and grades while actually teaching them nothing? Their kids were getting into elite schools all over the country, and many of them did just fine at those schools DESPITE the fact that their resumes were fake. That doesn't mean that school is useless (the kids who spent more time at the charter school did a lot worse than the kids who transferred in from other schools late and just got benefit of the fake scores), but it shows how ability is more broadly distributed than we pretend.


Caltech's admissions officers would be the first to tell you that they reject thousands of students who would do great at their schools. But they still get rejected because there are a limited # of slots, and so they pretend to judge "merit" to determine who gets in when half the time all they're judging is privilege. Why does that girl have more merit than the same girl with the same mind who didn't have the benifit of the same opportunities?



If I had to redesign college admissions, I would junk these fake claims of merit and go to a lottery instead. Each college would set a minimum spectrum of test scores/grades (weighted by course) that they require to qualify for their lottery. They could add quotas for any type of diversity they want (at least X black students, at least X latino students, at least X students from each state, at least X tennis players capable of qualifying for their team, at least X ranked chess players, and so on). Plug that shyt into a computer, enter in all the applications, let the computer reject all applications that don't meet the minimum qualifications to succeed at Caltech and then randomize acceptance to the rest that do.

If you have great stats but are randomly rejected? Congrats, now you know how it feels to have slightly less privilege and be randomly rejected, only now you just blame bad luck rather than a rigged system. You'll be fine, you'll almost certainly get into at least one of MIT, Stanford, Berkeley, etc. anyway. And even if you have to go to a next-tier school, if you're really that good then you'll come out fine and will kick ass there. Why not let the slightly less privileged kids get more of those elite slots?

At the end of the day, overall with these schools (the ultra top) it's not about your potential but what you can actually show and prove.

No doubt some people have faked resumes before, but I think especially at the very top like Caltech and M.I.T, they tend to flush these out. If it happens, its' once-in-a-blue moon they get scammed. Like the person in that youtube video has multiple science camps she got invited to and attended.

As I pointed out a couple posts ago, a lot of the kids who get accepted straight out of high school already have a proven rep amongst many professionals as to how legit they are. You can even see on youtube other people who got accepted into Caltech and M.I.T already have lab and research work done with other professors at other schools.

I think if somebody wants the best shot no matter their background, they need to attend as many of those as possible in addition to taking advanced courses, scoring high, etc.

That's basically what this person did, as a high schooler she went to Texas Tech and got a paid research program with professors there where they additionally got published:


Here are her accolades, which are insane as well. Way more STEM extracurriculars for Mechanical Engineering as a high schooler working for the government with security clearance:

Test Scores​

• ACT: Composite score of 36
  • English: 36
  • Math: 35
  • Reading: 36
  • Science: 36
  • Essay: 8 out of 12
• SAT Subject Tests:
  • Math Level 2: 800
  • Physics: 800
• Advanced Placement (AP) Exams:
  • Freshman Year:
    • Chinese Language and Culture: 5 (self-studied)
  • Sophomore Year:
    • AP European History: 5
    • AP Calculus BC: 5 (with a 5 subscore on Calculus AB)
    • AP Computer Science A: 4
  • Junior Year:
    • AP U.S. History: 5
    • AP Statistics: 5
    • AP Physics 1: 5
    • AP English Language and Composition: 5
    • AP Chemistry: 5
• Awards:
  • National AP Scholar

Academic Coursework and Grades​

• Overall Grades: Received all A's throughout high school.
• High School Curriculum:
  • Freshman Year:
    • English 1 Honors
    • Spanish II
    • Health (Semester 1)
    • Business Systems and Technology (Semester 2)
    • Pre-Calculus Honors (self-studied to advance two years ahead)
    • Orchestra
    • Physical Education
    • Biology Honors
    • Introduction to Engineering
  • Sophomore Year:
    • English II Honors
    • Spanish III
    • AP European History
    • AP Calculus BC
    • Orchestra
    • Physical Education
    • Principles of Engineering
    • Chemistry Honors
  • Junior Year:
    • AP English Language and Composition
    • AP Statistics
    • AP Physics 1
    • AP Chemistry
    • Orchestra
    • Engineering Design and Development
  • Senior Year:
    • AP Psychology
    • Economics Honors (Semester 1)
    • AP American Government (Semester 2)
    • AP Physics 2
    • Online AP English Literature
    • Orchestra
    • College Courses:
      • Multivariable Calculus (Semester 1)
      • Linear Algebra (Semester 2)
• Summer Coursework:
  • Cisco Cybersecurity Class (Dual Enrollment between sophomore and junior year)

Extracurricular Activities​

1. Paid Research Intern - Clark Scholars Program at Texas Tech University
   • Conducted computational math research combining statistics and computer science.
   • Worked closely with a professor for seven weeks.
   • Published a project with CISER Emerging Research.
   • Preparing a manuscript for publication with the Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics.
2. Chinese Cultural Dance
   • Studied classical and ethnic dance styles since the age of five.
   • Performed at cultural events and celebrations across Southern California.
   • Competed nationally, achieving first place overall soloist in her age division.
3. Director - All Girls Math Tournament
   • Organized empowerment-focused math competitions for girls.
   • Managed event planning and coordination across multiple locations.
   • Served in this role from sophomore through senior year.
4. President - School's Math Club
   • Led weekly meetings, fundraisers, and tutoring sessions.
   • Coordinated participation in local and national competitions, including the AMC.
   • Held the position during sophomore, junior, and senior years.
5. Vice President - Young Engineers in Action (Non-Profit Organization)
   • Aimed to promote STEM education among elementary school students.
   • Organized newsletters, weekly STEM classes, summer camps, and STEM nights.
   • Volunteered as a teacher and mentor in various programs.
6. Mechanical Engineering Intern
   • Worked at a national company on government-sanctioned projects (details confidential).
   • Utilized software like Autodesk Inventor and AutoCAD for 3D modeling.
   • Gained experience with professional protocols and security clearances.
7. Paid Dancer - Professional Musical Production
   • Performed as a dancer and actor in a professional musical.
   • Collaborated with professional choreographers and vocalists.
   • Staged performances at the El Portal Theatre in Hollywood to sold-out audiences.
8. Founder and President - Chinese Culture Club at School
   • Established the club to celebrate and share Chinese culture.
   • Organized annual Lunar New Year spirit weeks in collaboration with other Asian clubs.
   • Choreographed and performed a Chinese fan dance for the school's international show and community fair.
9. Cast Member - American Film Institute (AFI) Thesis Film
   • Participated as a dancer in a student thesis film.
   • Involved in weeks of rehearsals and filming at various Los Angeles locations.
   • Film showcased at the AFI premiere in Hollywood.
10. Viola Player - School's Symphony Orchestra and Chamber Strings
    • Active member since freshman year.
    • Performed at festivals and competitions, consistently earning unanimous superior ratings.
    • Participated in performances at venues like Knott's Berry Farm, Disneyland, and the Segerstrom Center for the Arts.
    • Collaborated with the school choir and engaged in inter-district events.

Additional Academic Achievements​

• Advanced Mathematics:
  • Self-studied to advance two years ahead in math, starting high school with Pre-Calculus Honors.
  • Skipped traditional courses through special permission from school administration.

Stuff like that looks great for these applications. It's funny because after this person got accepted into both Caltech and M.I.T, she chose USC. It really shows how much the bar is raising overall.