December 4, 2025 • 7 mins
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If you thought “kids who can’t read good” was a joke, welcome to reality: top universities are admitting freshmen who can’t do basic middle-school math. UC San Diego incoming cohorts scored shockingly low on Common Core items — single-digit success for some grade levels — and many placed into remedial classes despite AP math transcripts and A-minuses. This rant peels back the curtain on broken K–12 preparation, dumbed-down admissions, and prestige rankings that reward enrollment over competence. Show me your work — because right now our colleges are letting students graduate without one.
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/watchdog-on-wall-street-with-chris-markowski/id570687608
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2PtgPvJvqc2gkpGIkNMR5i
WATCH and SUBSCRIBE on:
https://www.youtube.com/@WatchdogOnWallstreet/featured
If you thought “kids who can’t read good” was a joke, welcome to reality: top universities are admitting freshmen who can’t do basic middle-school math. UC San Diego incoming cohorts scored shockingly low on Common Core items — single-digit success for some grade levels — and many placed into remedial classes despite AP math transcripts and A-minuses. This rant peels back the curtain on broken K–12 preparation, dumbed-down admissions, and prestige rankings that reward enrollment over competence. Show me your work — because right now our colleges are letting students graduate without one.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Watchdog on Wall Street podcast explaining the news coming
out of the complex worlds of finance, economics, and politics
and the impact it we'll have on everyday Americans. Author,
investment banker, consumer advocate, analyst, and trader Chris Markowski.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
We need a bloody Derek Zoolander school right now. Yeah,
if you're not familiar, I'm sorry. It's a sub reference. Yeah,
it was a movie Zoolander there with Ben Stiller, and
it wasn't very good. But there were a couple funny
parts in that movie which are inevitably going to get
when you got Will Ferrell at a movie. And again,
Ben Stiller's pretty funny guy as well. But anyway, neither
(00:37):
here nor there. Ben Stiller plays a model, male model,
not too bright, not too bright. He talks about his
desire to build a school for kids. The Derek Zoolanders
School for Kids who don't read good was the name
(00:57):
of the school, And I keep thinking about that when
I'm reading this. This blew me away, This blew me away.
Kids in elementary school, this elicit Finley Wall Street Journal.
Kids in elementary school learn are supposed to learn how
to add fractions and round numbers. It's not high level stuff. Okay,
(01:21):
many students at the University of California, San Diego. Now
this is a top public university, ranked sixth nationally by
Yoursnooze and World Report. Again that report is you know,
you know what that's good for? You know the bottom
If you have a bird put at the bottom of
(01:41):
your bird cage, it useless. Ah, the kids at that
school can't do either. Yeah, yeah, this is insane. Is
this is app the share of students and you see
San Diego's remedial math who answered questions correctly from the
(02:04):
common core Okay, just gonna blow your way. Grade level
one eighty seven percent, eighty seven percent University of California,
San Diego. You see, California, San Diego got grade one right,
eighty seven percent, Grade two, eighty two percent, Grade three,
(02:27):
seventy four percent, Grade four, sixty four percent, Grade five,
fifty four percent, Grade six, sixty seven percent, Grade seven,
forty one percent eighth grade. Only nineteen percent of the
incoming fresh could actually answer the questions correctly from the
common core math for eighth graders. I'm not making this up.
(02:49):
Why Why, Why in God's creation are our tax dollars
going to these institutions. Why are kids even allowed to
go to these schools? Well, it's business, of course, they
don't give it. Damn'd butts in seats. You can't pass
with basement? Why you go to college? Why should you
(03:10):
be allowed to go to college. Roughly one in eight
freshmen lack rudimentary high school math skills, defined as geometry, algebra,
and algebra two. Oh yeah, it gets worse. Students who
had been placed and a remedial high school math class
(03:31):
in twenty twenty three had roughly fifth grade level abilities.
Only thirty nine percent could correctly round the number three
hundred and seventy four thy five hundred and eighteen to
the nearest hundredth that's a third grade skill. Third grade skill.
(03:55):
Because so many incoming students were numerically illiterate the universe,
he added a remedial class for middle and elementary school math.
Among the students placed into that math course, ninety four
percent had completed. I wait to wait for this, Okay, kids,
this is this is how screwed up. This is how
(04:17):
I saw this crap too. Okay, And I know my
youngest is a sophomore in college right now, but I
saw this scam. Firsthand, I was like, what am I?
What am I paying for? How much does this cost
to me? Wait for it. The kids, the kids that
are in the middle and elementary school math remedial that
(04:39):
they had to add them completed ap math in high school.
Yeah yeah, pre cal calc statistics and received an average
of a minus in those courses. How is that possible?
(05:05):
How's that possible? Again? She writes, It's just an indictment
of a the University of California's admissions B public K
through twelve schools, C US News and World Reports, college rankings,
or D all of the above, answer my friends, D. Yeah.
(05:26):
The UC Board of Regents in twenty twenty scrapped standardized
tests as an admission requirement because it wasn't equitable. It
wasn't equitable. Yeah, third minorities, they're not scoring as high. Yeah. No.
Acquiring applicants to submit standardized test scots could also make
(05:48):
it easier for critics to prove the university it's providing
racial preferences. Yeah. Yeah, I'm getting nauseous just just reading
reading this. This is where we're at today, That's where
(06:09):
we're at today, and I'm lost quite friend again as parents.
Are are you that clueles to the ability of your
kids and what they're capable of doing remedial I mean
kids having to take elementary in middle school, remedial in
(06:30):
college and US News and Rule reports makes this the
sixth best public school in time Forget in the country
or something. What how is this possible? Okay, I'm gonna,
I'm gonna. I'm gonna give you. I'm gonna give you
what my math teacher has taught me back in the day.
Show me your work, Show me your work. Show me
(06:54):
how you came up with those numbers. Watchdog on Wall
Street dot Com
The Watchdog on Wall Street podcast explaining the news coming
out of the complex worlds of finance, economics, and politics
and the impact it we'll have on everyday Americans. Author,
investment banker, consumer advocate, analyst, and trader Chris Markowski.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
We need a bloody Derek Zoolander school right now. Yeah,
if you're not familiar, I'm sorry. It's a sub reference. Yeah,
it was a movie Zoolander there with Ben Stiller, and
it wasn't very good. But there were a couple funny
parts in that movie which are inevitably going to get
when you got Will Ferrell at a movie. And again,
Ben Stiller's pretty funny guy as well. But anyway, neither
(00:37):
here nor there. Ben Stiller plays a model, male model,
not too bright, not too bright. He talks about his
desire to build a school for kids. The Derek Zoolanders
School for Kids who don't read good was the name
(00:57):
of the school, And I keep thinking about that when
I'm reading this. This blew me away, This blew me away.
Kids in elementary school, this elicit Finley Wall Street Journal.
Kids in elementary school learn are supposed to learn how
to add fractions and round numbers. It's not high level stuff. Okay,
(01:21):
many students at the University of California, San Diego. Now
this is a top public university, ranked sixth nationally by
Yoursnooze and World Report. Again that report is you know,
you know what that's good for? You know the bottom
If you have a bird put at the bottom of
(01:41):
your bird cage, it useless. Ah, the kids at that
school can't do either. Yeah, yeah, this is insane. Is
this is app the share of students and you see
San Diego's remedial math who answered questions correctly from the
(02:04):
common core Okay, just gonna blow your way. Grade level
one eighty seven percent, eighty seven percent University of California,
San Diego. You see, California, San Diego got grade one right,
eighty seven percent, Grade two, eighty two percent, Grade three,
(02:27):
seventy four percent, Grade four, sixty four percent, Grade five,
fifty four percent, Grade six, sixty seven percent, Grade seven,
forty one percent eighth grade. Only nineteen percent of the
incoming fresh could actually answer the questions correctly from the
common core math for eighth graders. I'm not making this up.
(02:49):
Why Why, Why in God's creation are our tax dollars
going to these institutions. Why are kids even allowed to
go to these schools? Well, it's business, of course, they
don't give it. Damn'd butts in seats. You can't pass
with basement? Why you go to college? Why should you
(03:10):
be allowed to go to college. Roughly one in eight
freshmen lack rudimentary high school math skills, defined as geometry, algebra,
and algebra two. Oh yeah, it gets worse. Students who
had been placed and a remedial high school math class
(03:31):
in twenty twenty three had roughly fifth grade level abilities.
Only thirty nine percent could correctly round the number three
hundred and seventy four thy five hundred and eighteen to
the nearest hundredth that's a third grade skill. Third grade skill.
(03:55):
Because so many incoming students were numerically illiterate the universe,
he added a remedial class for middle and elementary school math.
Among the students placed into that math course, ninety four
percent had completed. I wait to wait for this, Okay, kids,
this is this is how screwed up. This is how
(04:17):
I saw this crap too. Okay, And I know my
youngest is a sophomore in college right now, but I
saw this scam. Firsthand, I was like, what am I?
What am I paying for? How much does this cost
to me? Wait for it. The kids, the kids that
are in the middle and elementary school math remedial that
(04:39):
they had to add them completed ap math in high school.
Yeah yeah, pre cal calc statistics and received an average
of a minus in those courses. How is that possible?
(05:05):
How's that possible? Again? She writes, It's just an indictment
of a the University of California's admissions B public K
through twelve schools, C US News and World Reports, college rankings,
or D all of the above, answer my friends, D. Yeah.
(05:26):
The UC Board of Regents in twenty twenty scrapped standardized
tests as an admission requirement because it wasn't equitable. It
wasn't equitable. Yeah, third minorities, they're not scoring as high. Yeah. No.
Acquiring applicants to submit standardized test scots could also make
(05:48):
it easier for critics to prove the university it's providing
racial preferences. Yeah. Yeah, I'm getting nauseous just just reading
reading this. This is where we're at today, That's where
(06:09):
we're at today, and I'm lost quite friend again as parents.
Are are you that clueles to the ability of your
kids and what they're capable of doing remedial I mean
kids having to take elementary in middle school, remedial in
(06:30):
college and US News and Rule reports makes this the
sixth best public school in time Forget in the country
or something. What how is this possible? Okay, I'm gonna,
I'm gonna. I'm gonna give you. I'm gonna give you
what my math teacher has taught me back in the day.
Show me your work, Show me your work. Show me
(06:54):
how you came up with those numbers. Watchdog on Wall
Street dot Com
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