When Maya Mathews was in fifth grade, her favorite subject was math.
But when she entered sixth grade and asked to be placed in a more-advanced math track, her request was denied because a teacher said she “lacked the confidence necessary to handle a more rigorous curriculum,” Mathews recounted.
“I was shocked. It had never really occurred to me that I had to show confidence as well as right answers in order to handle a more-rigorous curriculum,” she said.
Today, Mathews is a senior at Newton North High School, and she serves as the student member of the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education. She is also the chairperson of the State Student Advisory Council and a fourth-term class president.
Mathews described her elementary-school experience to a room filled with educators, policymakers and researchers in Boston, underscoring the importance of listening to students when it comes to individual interests.