Of all the academic choices a student entering eight grade or high school must make, math course selection exerts the most influence on future choices. Some of the biggest considerations include the following questions:

What should drive math course selection?
How do grade level, accelerated, and gifted tracks differ?
Can students change tracks in high school?
What are the implications of math course selection for SAT and ACT scores?
Should advanced math students choose calculus or statistics?

What should a student, parent, or counselor consider when weighing the options? To clarify the process of choosing high school math courses strategically. I spoke to author and math expert Richard Corn.

Richard Corn has helped hundreds of middle school and high school students with their studies in mathematics and with preparation for standardized tests. When students complained about the quality of the prep books sold by big box publishers, Richard decided to write his own books for the math sections of the ACT and SAT. His books have been very successful, having sold more than 36,000 copies.