News for hackers. Stuff that matters.
Re:Failing grades soar with AI usage, dwindling math skills ... by frollogaston on Thursday June 04, 2026 @03:16AM (#48395212)
Berkeley chancellor told students to vote for 2020 California Proposition 16, which would've repeated 1996 Proposition 209 that banned race-based admission in public universities. Prop 16 failed. Subsequently, Cal started ignoring SAT/ACT scores. I have to think this was their alternative way of taking fewer Asian students, who average highest on that. Soon after I got an email from the same chancellor praising the change for bringing more racial diversity. The email included before and after numbers where % Asian decreased and all others increased.
Re:Failing grades soar with AI usage, dwindling math skills ... by alberto-m on Thursday June 04, 2026 @04:04AM (#48395621)
(minor typo: repeated --> repealed. Sorry for the nitpicking but it confused me when I first read it)
Re:Failing grades soar with AI usage, dwindling math skills ... by frollogaston on Thursday June 04, 2026 @10:36AM (#48399330)
No that's valid to call out, thanks
Re:Failing grades soar with AI usage, dwindling math skills ... by j-bos on Thursday June 04, 2026 @07:00AM (#48396886)
Reminds me of this asian professor getting blocked for promotion, allegedly, on the basis of race, but in a roundabout way. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/professor-sues-texas-unive...
Re:Failing grades soar with AI usage, dwindling math skills ... by Georgelemental on Thursday June 04, 2026 @09:57AM (#48398730)
Yes, they falsely classified him as white in order to deny him the promotion (because discriminating against white people is 100% non-controversial in that environment)
Re:Failing grades soar with AI usage, dwindling math skills ... by ironman1478 on Thursday June 04, 2026 @02:36PM (#48402791)
I think it's just indians being racist. The person could've put any other non white category and it would've happened.
Re:Failing grades soar with AI usage, dwindling math skills ... by mywittyname on Thursday June 04, 2026 @11:32AM (#48400176)
They could have easily made test scores a pass/fail per program and not weight higher scores for admission purposes. It achieves the goal of ensuring students have requisite knowledge for the program while not favoring students who are able to ace the test.

Or, even better - just expand programs so they can accept more students who pass the test. This would probably improve diversity without artificially restricting access to highish performers.

Re:Failing grades soar with AI usage, dwindling math skills ... by lokar on Thursday June 04, 2026 @11:49AM (#48400419)
To expand the UC system to accommodate everyone who could do the work would require repealing Prop 13, much harder.
Re:Failing grades soar with AI usage, dwindling math skills ... by thescriptkiddie on Thursday June 04, 2026 @10:22PM (#48407206)
people thinking california universities are discriminating against asian students is really funny