March 13, 2013
Math Teachers Strive to Bring Core to At-Risk Students
By Anthony Rebora
Education Week Teacher.
The Common Core State Standards for mathematics, now being introduced in
schools across the country, set new grade-by-grade expectations for
deepening students' understanding of math concepts, with an emphasis on
algebraic thinking.
But while many accomplished math teachers are enthusiastic about the
standards' emphasis on mathematical reasoning and strategic expertise over
rote computation, some say the transition to the new framework poses daunting
challenges for students who are already behind in math.
"Every time I talk to other teachers, this issue comes up," said Silvestre Arcos,
the founding math teacher at KIPP Washington Heights Middle School, a
charter school in New York City. "The big question is, how do we build up these
advanced skills with kids who come in behind?"
Students need "prerequisite knowledge" to meet the new grade-level
expectations mapped out in the common standards, said José Vilson, who
teaches 8th grade math at I.S. 52, a public middle school a in New York City's
Inwood neighborhood. But by the time they reach him, students at his school—
many of whom are English-language learners—often "have a lot of catching up
to do," he said.
See Also
Read additional stories from our Common-Core Instructional Opportunities
package.
Such observations appear to reflect broader professional concerns about the
common standards. More than half of the respondents in a recent survey of K-
12 teachers who are registered users of edweek.org said they feel unprepared
to teach the common standards to high-needs students.
Despite often lacking support and clear guidance, however, teachers aren't
necessarily ready to throw in the towel. Some math educators are taking steps
to refine their practices and adopt creative methods to help at-risk and
struggling students make the shift to the new instructional paradigm.
Interpretive Work
One approach commonly cited by teachers, for example, is to maintain the
common core’s emphasis on abstract reasoning and conceptual understanding
while, at least at first, using word problems that require less advanced math
skills.
"It's OK if you need to start more basic," said Arcos, explaining that at first he
used two-digit addition without regrouping with his 5th graders, many of whom
were at a 2nd or 3rd grade level in math.
The key is to "avoid focusing on the algorithm or any tricks," he said, so that
the students have to work through the problems strategically. Arcos noted that
students at his school have daily problem-solving classes in this vein, as well as
computation-skills practice two mornings a week.
Similarly, Todd Rackowitz, a math teacher at Independence High School in
Charlotte, N.C., noted that, in integrating the common standards into an
Algebra I course for students who are behind grade level, he "focuses on
problems that don't involve complex computation at first." Even using basic
math, students can begin to "make connections between the key elements of
algebra, like slope and parallel lines and rate of change," he said.
Eighth grade teacher Vilson said that he, too, has had "to integrate prior [grade-
level] skills into problems," adding that this can require "a lot of interpretation"
of the standards, curriculum materials, and expectations for assessments.
"There's some guesswork involved," he acknowledged.
Extra Support
Teachers introducing the common standards in math into classes with high
numbers of at-risk or behind-grade-level students also frequently speak about
the need for "modeling" and "scaffolding," highlighting the importance of
intentional instructional support.
"You have to help kids understand how to justify solutions, through discussion,
interaction, and close guidance," said Arcos, adding that his school has
adjusted scheduling to allow for more small-group and one-on-one instruction
in math.
Since many of the students at his school struggle with English-language and
literacy issues, Arcos often focuses on building their close-reading skills as part
of math instruction, helping them break apart the text of word problems and
annotate the sentences. He has found that allowing the students to draw model
representations of word problems and collaborate on solutions can also be
helpful.
When his students are struggling with a problem or new concept, Arcos said, he
demonstrates how to work through similar problems and discusses his
reasoning with them.
"You never want to pass up an opportunity to really teach," Rackowitz said of
his like-minded approach. "If a student is struggling, you want to give them a
start and talk him through it while letting him work it out. Provide scaffolding in
terms of understanding the problem and possible approaches, offering
progressively less and less."
To build students' problem-solving and abstract–reasoning skills, he has also
found it helpful to have students work out solutions and understandings
through "group discussion and discovery."
To spark engagement with problems, Justin Minkel, a 2nd and 3rd grade
teacher at Jones Elementary School in Springdale, Ark., noted that he has his
students "do a lot of writing in math." This practice, he said, helps students see
the conceptual underpinnings of the problems they are working on and, with his
assistance, see how words and phrases can relate to mathematical notations.
Minkel, whose school has a high percentage of low-income students, said he
also makes an effort to give his students problems that have "practical
applicability" to the real world. He noted that he has had success, for example,
in having his students use what they were learning in math in an economics unit
that involved determining the costs of materials for a building project against a
budget.
Such activities can help students "make sense of problems"—the first of the
common core's Standards for Mathematical Practice—and begin thinking about
the ways math relates to their own lives, Minkel said.
Arcos advocates that approach as well. "If you're going to teach decimals," he
stated, "do it with real-world, authentic problems."
'Harder to Teach'
While some math teachers working with struggling students are finding ways to
adapt their instruction to the common standards, however, they still point to the
need for additional training and professional development in the field.
"It's harder to teach this way than just teaching algorithms and steps," said
Minkel. "It forces you to go deeper. In the end, teachers have to get better at
math."
Minkel, the 2007 State Teacher of the Year in Arkansas, said he feels fortunate
in that his school switched to a common-core-like math approach several years
ago, smoothing the transition by hiring an onsite math coach and providing
regular job-embedded professional development. "She talked through a lot of
the questions I had," he said of the coach. "Sometimes we realize that we don't
understand things as well as we thought."
Rackowitz, a National Board-certified teacher, noted that he has jumped at
every common-core-oriented professional development opportunity that has
come his way, but still feels he needs additional training to break old habits and
become more adept at helping his students adjust to new methodologies. "I
need more [work] on coming up with these mathematical-discovery activities
and finding creative ways not just to teach the algorithm, since that's the way I
learned," he said.
Vilson lamented that, at this stage, teachers' efforts to adjust to the new
framework are complicated by the uncertainty surrounding the makeup of the
common-core-aligned assessments, which are scheduled to go into effect in
2014-15. "Even with the understanding I may have acquired, I still feel that I
don't know much … because of the assessments," he said in an email.
Math Teachers Strive to Bring Core to At-Risk Students
By Anthony Rebora
Education Week Teacher.
The Common Core State Standards for mathematics, now being introduced in
schools across the country, set new grade-by-grade expectations for
deepening students' understanding of math concepts, with an emphasis on
algebraic thinking.
But while many accomplished math teachers are enthusiastic about the
standards' emphasis on mathematical reasoning and strategic expertise over
rote computation, some say the transition to the new framework poses daunting
challenges for students who are already behind in math.
"Every time I talk to other teachers, this issue comes up," said Silvestre Arcos,
the founding math teacher at KIPP Washington Heights Middle School, a
charter school in New York City. "The big question is, how do we build up these
advanced skills with kids who come in behind?"
Students need "prerequisite knowledge" to meet the new grade-level
expectations mapped out in the common standards, said José Vilson, who
teaches 8th grade math at I.S. 52, a public middle school a in New York City's
Inwood neighborhood. But by the time they reach him, students at his school—
many of whom are English-language learners—often "have a lot of catching up
to do," he said.
See Also
Read additional stories from our Common-Core Instructional Opportunities
package.
Such observations appear to reflect broader professional concerns about the
common standards. More than half of the respondents in a recent survey of K-
12 teachers who are registered users of edweek.org said they feel unprepared
to teach the common standards to high-needs students.
Despite often lacking support and clear guidance, however, teachers aren't
necessarily ready to throw in the towel. Some math educators are taking steps
to refine their practices and adopt creative methods to help at-risk and
struggling students make the shift to the new instructional paradigm.
Interpretive Work
One approach commonly cited by teachers, for example, is to maintain the
common core’s emphasis on abstract reasoning and conceptual understanding
while, at least at first, using word problems that require less advanced math
skills.
"It's OK if you need to start more basic," said Arcos, explaining that at first he
used two-digit addition without regrouping with his 5th graders, many of whom
were at a 2nd or 3rd grade level in math.
The key is to "avoid focusing on the algorithm or any tricks," he said, so that
the students have to work through the problems strategically. Arcos noted that
students at his school have daily problem-solving classes in this vein, as well as
computation-skills practice two mornings a week.
Similarly, Todd Rackowitz, a math teacher at Independence High School in
Charlotte, N.C., noted that, in integrating the common standards into an
Algebra I course for students who are behind grade level, he "focuses on
problems that don't involve complex computation at first." Even using basic
math, students can begin to "make connections between the key elements of
algebra, like slope and parallel lines and rate of change," he said.
Eighth grade teacher Vilson said that he, too, has had "to integrate prior [grade-
level] skills into problems," adding that this can require "a lot of interpretation"
of the standards, curriculum materials, and expectations for assessments.
"There's some guesswork involved," he acknowledged.
Extra Support
Teachers introducing the common standards in math into classes with high
numbers of at-risk or behind-grade-level students also frequently speak about
the need for "modeling" and "scaffolding," highlighting the importance of
intentional instructional support.
"You have to help kids understand how to justify solutions, through discussion,
interaction, and close guidance," said Arcos, adding that his school has
adjusted scheduling to allow for more small-group and one-on-one instruction
in math.
Since many of the students at his school struggle with English-language and
literacy issues, Arcos often focuses on building their close-reading skills as part
of math instruction, helping them break apart the text of word problems and
annotate the sentences. He has found that allowing the students to draw model
representations of word problems and collaborate on solutions can also be
helpful.
When his students are struggling with a problem or new concept, Arcos said, he
demonstrates how to work through similar problems and discusses his
reasoning with them.
"You never want to pass up an opportunity to really teach," Rackowitz said of
his like-minded approach. "If a student is struggling, you want to give them a
start and talk him through it while letting him work it out. Provide scaffolding in
terms of understanding the problem and possible approaches, offering
progressively less and less."
To build students' problem-solving and abstract–reasoning skills, he has also
found it helpful to have students work out solutions and understandings
through "group discussion and discovery."
To spark engagement with problems, Justin Minkel, a 2nd and 3rd grade
teacher at Jones Elementary School in Springdale, Ark., noted that he has his
students "do a lot of writing in math." This practice, he said, helps students see
the conceptual underpinnings of the problems they are working on and, with his
assistance, see how words and phrases can relate to mathematical notations.
Minkel, whose school has a high percentage of low-income students, said he
also makes an effort to give his students problems that have "practical
applicability" to the real world. He noted that he has had success, for example,
in having his students use what they were learning in math in an economics unit
that involved determining the costs of materials for a building project against a
budget.
Such activities can help students "make sense of problems"—the first of the
common core's Standards for Mathematical Practice—and begin thinking about
the ways math relates to their own lives, Minkel said.
Arcos advocates that approach as well. "If you're going to teach decimals," he
stated, "do it with real-world, authentic problems."
'Harder to Teach'
While some math teachers working with struggling students are finding ways to
adapt their instruction to the common standards, however, they still point to the
need for additional training and professional development in the field.
"It's harder to teach this way than just teaching algorithms and steps," said
Minkel. "It forces you to go deeper. In the end, teachers have to get better at
math."
Minkel, the 2007 State Teacher of the Year in Arkansas, said he feels fortunate
in that his school switched to a common-core-like math approach several years
ago, smoothing the transition by hiring an onsite math coach and providing
regular job-embedded professional development. "She talked through a lot of
the questions I had," he said of the coach. "Sometimes we realize that we don't
understand things as well as we thought."
Rackowitz, a National Board-certified teacher, noted that he has jumped at
every common-core-oriented professional development opportunity that has
come his way, but still feels he needs additional training to break old habits and
become more adept at helping his students adjust to new methodologies. "I
need more [work] on coming up with these mathematical-discovery activities
and finding creative ways not just to teach the algorithm, since that's the way I
learned," he said.
Vilson lamented that, at this stage, teachers' efforts to adjust to the new
framework are complicated by the uncertainty surrounding the makeup of the
common-core-aligned assessments, which are scheduled to go into effect in
2014-15. "Even with the understanding I may have acquired, I still feel that I
don't know much … because of the assessments," he said in an email.
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Why This Website
Stutz Artiano Shinoff
& Holtz v. Maura
Larkins defamation
SDCOE
CVESD
Castle Park Elem
Law Enforcement
CTA
CVE
Stutz Artiano Shinoff
& Holtz
Silence is Golden
Schools and Violence
Office Admin Hearings
Larkins OAH Hearing
Common Core
May 31, 2013
Tea party groups
mobilizing against
Common Core education
overhaul
Why does the Tea Party dislike the
bipartisan Common Core
standards? Common Core is a
wonderful plan, focusing on
understanding rather than
memorization. It's not so
surprising, however, that the
teachers union is against
something new.
Tea party groups
mobilizing against
Common Core education
overhaul
Why does the Tea Party dislike the
bipartisan Common Core
standards? Common Core is a
wonderful plan, focusing on
understanding rather than
memorization. It's not so
surprising, however, that the
teachers union is against
something new.
| News, information and ideas about our education system by Maura Larkins |