I have worked for over 15 years in education in Oregon, my kid is in grade school, and in my experience this is simply not true concerning the use of multiplication tables and having to learn basic math concepts. Sure there is the problem of making things look better on paper than in reality in the interest of appearances that help them keep the money coming in (political, all about appearances, etc.), but in the classroom the focus is entirely different in most cases. The teachers, the students and the curriculum are not the problem in public education that I have seen. Political bullshit is.