Michael writes -

There's also a group in the middle that would be more willing to do learn math and science, if it were a little less abstract and boring.

The same is true as to computer programming. What does being able to print "Hello World" to the screen do for me, after all. The beauty is, teaching science with programming and programming with science, can bring both subject areas (if we choose to consider them to be separate subject areas) alive in ways not otherwise possible. Does this qualify as Synergy, Kirby? Art