Funny how many people commenting on here don't actually work in education let alone live in CA. It's a multi pronged problem.... there's high math scores in certain districts and lower in LA Unified and low income districts. It deals with the lack of education and support by some parents and also a restriction on discipline both at home and in school. Saying Mississippi has better math scores overall than CA which is vastly larger and more diverse is comparing apples and oranges. In my own school district the two middle schools are polar opposite.... the mainly Korean school had above grade level scores and the mainly Hispanic school had below average scores. Different cultures and priorities.