Too much work demotivates students

In the July 10, 2012 issue of USA Today, I read two articles that seemed to contradict each other. One, a commentary by Patrick Welsh, said that many students in the United States were signing up for remedial math classes during the summer holidays to digest what they had failed to understand during the semester. The other, a front-page story, said that 37 percent of fourth-graders, 57 percent of eighth-graders and 39 percent of 12th-graders complain their math lessons are too easy.

This reminded me of the story of Goldilocks. Tasting three bowls of porridge, she finds one is too hot, another is too cold, only the third is just right. It seems that students want a bowl of instructional porridge that is just right.

But is that possible?