I’ve been in the Integrated Math Program all four years here, and I used to be embarrassed admitting I was even in the class. There’s a certain stigma that comes along with this course, unlike every other class.

Integrated is the second lowest math class offered at Algonquin, and it covers the basics of Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II over the course of four years. We learn what people learn in three years in four instead.

It’s usually where the school sticks transfer students, kids who just aren’t that strong at math, and a few unfortunate kids who they deemed unfit for regular paced math classes because maybe they weren’t getting straight A’s in middle school math. With that, being in a lower math class often causes the assumption that you’re in all CP or low classes.

I’ve had classmates ask for my help on math during lunch, stuff far more advanced than I have ever seen, so when I reluctantly admit my math level, I immediately get hit with a surprised look and the comment: “Oh, but I thought you were smart…” because I’m in honors English and History classes with them. Our classmates tend to generalize who is “smart” and who isn’t. I know I’m also guilty of this, but there are better ways to express this shock than with an insult.

It’s not usually a known fact that once you’re in the Integrated Program, you’re stuck there. It’s where the school sticks the kids that probably won’t stand out in a normal paced CP math class.

Despite testing out of it both freshman and sophomore year, I learned it’s not possible to be moved up unless you want to try to balance two math classes in addition to your normal work load. I’ve only heard of a few people being able to handle this workload with grace, but I was not one of them.

Yes, actually, I am smart. I’ve held primarily A’s all four years in my Integrated Math classes, and I’m actually in mostly honors classes in everything else I take. I’m just better at writing than solving complex equations, and that’s perfectly alright. People in similar situations as me often hear these comments, whether it be the math or English divide. Because most students are so competitive over grades here, we who take a combination of higher and lower level classes hear unintentionally rude remarks, but we’re taught to just brush them off, even though some are worse than others.

Who’s really going to discipline a kid calling someone else stupid in high school? Some battles just aren’t worth it anymore.

I used to be really embarrassed because I cared about what others thought of me after they knew I was in a lower math class. I thought they’d think differently of me, but in reality it’s their problem if my math level changes their views on who I am as a person.

There are always going to be people who joke about aspects of yourself, but regardless everyone in Integrated is going to graduate, just like the rest of you, whether you change the math system or not. We just have to remember that.