National Math Advisory Panel Report2008

[S E ANDERSON]

MATH EDUCATION

Yesterday (March 13), the National Mathematics Advisory Panel released its final report.  The panel, created by President Bush in April 2006, was charged with making recommendations to the President and the Secretary on the best use of scientifically based research to advance the teaching and learning of mathematics, with a specific focus on preparation for and success in algebra (grades PK-8).  Why algebra?  It is a "demonstrable gateway to later achievement," needed for higher math in high school.  Also, completion of Algebra II correlates significantly with success in college and future earnings.  Panelists, including mathematicians, cognitive psychologists, and educators, held 12 meetings across the country (receiving testimony from 200 individuals and 150 organizations), reviewed 16,000 studies, and scrutinized surveys from 743 algebra teachers.  The result is 45 findings and recommendations on a range of items, including in structional practices, materials, assessments, and teacher professional development.  Below are some highlights.

Core Principles of Math Instruction

    * The areas to be studied from pre-kindergarten through eighth-grade should be streamlined, and a well-defined set of the most important topics should be emphasized in the early grades.  Any approach that revisits topics year after year -- without brining them to closure -- should be avoided.

    * Proficiency with whole numbers, fractions, and aspects of geometry and measurement are the foundations for algebra.  Of these, knowledge of fractions is the most important skill not developed among American students.

    * Conceptual understanding, computational and procedural fluency, and problem-solving skills are equally important and mutually reinforce each other. 

    * Students should develop immediate recall of arithmetic facts to free the "working memory" for solving more complex problems.

    * More students should be prepared for and offered an "authentic" algebra course in the eighth-grade.  The major topics of school algebra include symbols and _expressions, linear equations, quadratic equations, functions, polynomials, and combinatorics and finite probability.

Effective Instruction Matters

    * Teachers' regular use of formative assessments can improve student learning.

    * The belief that children of particular ages cannot learn certain content because they are "too young" or "not ready" has consistently been shown to be false.

    * Explicit instruction for students who struggle is effective in increasing learning. 

    * Gifted students should be allowed to accelerate their learning.

    * Publishers should produce shorter, more focused, and more mathematically accurate textbooks.  The excessive length of some U.S. textbooks is not necessary for high achievement.

Other Findings

    * Much of the public's "resignation" about math education is based on the erroneous idea that success comes from inherent talent or ability, not effort.  A focus on the importance of effort in learning will improve outcomes.  If students believe that their efforts to learn make them "smarter," they show greater persistence in learning.

    * Teachers' math knowledge is important for students' achievement.  The preparation of elementary and middle school educators should be strengthened.  Also, the use of teachers who have specialized in elementary math could be an alternative to increasing all elementary teachers' content knowledge by focusing the need for expertise on a fewer teachers.

    * The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and state assessments in math should be improved in quality and should emphasize the most critical knowledge and skills leading to algebra.

The Department will convene a national summit based on the recommendations of the panel.  FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE GO TO http://www.ed.gov/mathpanel.

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s. e. anderson is author of "The Black Holocaust for Beginners"

Social Activism is not a hobby: it's a Lifestyle lasting a Lifetime

http://blackeducator.blogspot.com

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S E ANDERSON- 

author of "The Black Holocaust for Beginners"

blackeducator.blogspot.com

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