Abstract
Ubiquitous errors in algebra like $(x+y)^2=x^2+y^2$ are a constant reminder that most students' manipulation of algebraic symbols has become detached from structural principles. The U.S. mathematics education community (NCTM, 2000) has responded by shying away from algebra as a structural study, preferring instead to ground meaning in empirical domains of reference. A new analysis of such errors shows that students' detachment from structural meaning stems from an inadequate structural curriculum, not from the inherent difficulty of adopting an abstract perspective on expressions and equations. A structural curriculum is outlined that preserves the possibility of students' engaging fully with algebra as both an empirical and a structural study.