The recent success of the film “ Hidden Figures” has brought
into the public consciousness the struggle of minority women to be acknowledged
as competent in math (and science). There is a need to challenge minority students
to succeed in math and to accomplish that educators must look beyond the
traditional classroom setting. A recent
article in the New York Times examined an experimental four-week summer
program, BEAM 6 in New York City. BEAM stands for Bridge to Enter Advanced
Mathematics and is designed for students had just completed the sixth grade. This
extracurricular program currently has over 75 students who come from low-income
families throughout the city’s public schools. The program has demonstrated
that these students, with the proper teaching and encouragement, can succeed in
higher-level mathematics.
According to the Times article only 2% of the Ph.Ds. in
math, engineering and physical sciences were awarded to African- American
candidates in 2015. The rate for Latino students was only slightly better. The
BEAM program is just a microcosm of what needs to be done to both encourage and
assist low-income minority students to succeed.
C.2017 J. Margolis
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