I think it's time. The kids either don't have the time or don't make the time to do the problems. You have to work through the problem to learn algebra. I know it was many, many years ago, but I recall algebra homework taking a long time to do. Remember the answers to the odd questions were always in the back. 
And exams were open book. At least in my school. You had access to all the rules, which were printed on the inside covers. My teacher said that having access to the book didn't help you if you didn't know what to do with it. 
I hate to see us dumbing future generations down even more. So what if you don't use algebra every day, it's good brain exercise to learn it & to know the concepts behind it. Why does every thing have to get down to if you use it every day? Civics applies to our lives everyday, but a lot of schools no longer teach that. 
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