UC-Berkeley Math Professor Criticizes Declining Student Standards, Blames Removal of Standardized Testing
Zvezdelina Stankova, a professor of mathematics at UC Berkeley, has publicly criticized the declining academic standards at the university, stating that a significant portion of her calculus students lack fundamental math skills, including fractions and basic algebra. She reports that office hours, intended for discussing advanced calculus concepts, are now frequently spent on remedial mathematics typically taught in middle school. Stankova attributes this decline to the removal of standardized testing requirements for admissions. She notes that while a diagnostic exam before 2020 showed 71% of Calculus I students were prepared, this figure dropped to 44% between 2021 and 2023. By 2022-23, over one-third of calculus students exhibited severe math deficits, with zero being the most common score on the diagnostic exam. Stankova, who founded the Berkeley Math Circle and a local math olympiad, is among thousands of faculty members advocating for the reinstatement of SAT and ACT scores in admissions. 
