Considered (if Crackpot) Opinion: Why American Kids Are Bad at Math

International studies show that US students score near the bottom on international math tests (See the Trends in Math and Science Study, TIMSS). Even after years of reform and some improvement, the news is still bleak. Why is this? Well, I have a thought (go figure!).

Mathematics is its own language (see Mathematics as a Language as well as the writings of Dr. Warren Esty of the University of Montana) Because the US is so linguistically isolated, our students don't have a variety of linguistic templates in their heads. To them, communication is in English and that's it. The different "syntax" and "vocabulary" of mathematics throws them off. The language of mathematics presents as a foreign language, and we REALLY have a hard time with that. 

Just another plug for world languages--early and often!