K-12 Mathematics Education
The Vision & Core Commitments were developed by the Math Working Group, a K-12 committee of math educators with a parent/guardian representative. The intent of the Vision & Core Commitments is to communicate the aspirations that we as three shared school districts have for mathematical thinking, teaching, and learning.
Vision
As the Amherst Regional Public Schools, we aspire to create classrooms and schools where all students have access to a high-quality, engaging mathematics program that embodies the Guiding Principles for Mathematics Programs, the Standards for Mathematical Content, and the Standards for Mathematical Practice (Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks 2017).
Our curriculum will be mathematically rich, offering all students opportunities to learn important mathematical concepts and procedures with understanding. Across the district, in every classroom in every school, all students will have equitable access to high-quality curricular materials, the current technology to support learning, well-trained educators, and the strong support of their parents & guardians as they strive to achieve excellence in mathematics. We will have ambitious expectations for all students and provide accommodations for all who need them, as part of the district’s commitment that all students should be able to access higher-level mathematics.
Under the skilled guidance of their teachers, students will learn to be flexible and resourceful problem solvers. They will draw on knowledge from a wide variety of mathematical topics. Sometimes they will approach the same problem from different mathematical perspectives or represent the mathematics in different ways until they find a path that enables them to make progress. Teachers will help students make, refine, and explore conjectures on the basis of evidence and use a variety of reasoning and proof techniques to confirm or disprove those conjectures. Independently and in groups, students will confidently engage in complex mathematical tasks chosen carefully by their teachers.
Our students will value mathematics, engage actively in learning, and hold themselves accountable for their own progress. The development of a growth mindset will be a priority in mathematics, as in other curriculum areas, and parents and guardians will support the idea that productive struggle is central to the learning process.
Achieving this vision will require the collective efforts of students, teachers, parents & guardians, and the district. Each group has a central role in helping all students achieve their highest potential.
Core Commitments
Students will...
- Develop both mathematical understanding and skills through mathematical experiences that include a balance of conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, and application.
- View themselves as learners and see the value of productive struggle.
- Be expected to explain why the mathematics they are learning makes sense orally and in writing.
- Be expected to engage in productive discourse about their thinking and reasoning.
- Be expected to grapple with mathematical ideas and make and explore conjectures about those ideas.
- Be expected to engage in mathematically rich problems, make sense of them, look for entry points, devise solution methods, and interpret results in the context of situations.
- Be expected to apply the mathematics they are learning to everyday life, society, and the workplace.
- Have a growth mindset toward their learning of mathematics and will access the opportunities their teachers provide to them for improving their work.
- See mathematics as sensible, useful, and doable.
Educators will...
- Follow the guiding principles for mathematics education as articulated in the Guiding Principles for Mathematics Programs, the Standards for Mathematical Content, and the Standards for Mathematical Practice (MA Curriculum Frameworks 2017).
- Create student-centered learning environments that provide all students opportunities to engage in meaningful learning through individual and collaborative experiences.
- Have a common understanding of the developmental process by which students come to understand number and the structure of meaning of operations, in order to keep access open to all students.
- Carefully craft and ask targeted questions that focus on the key mathematical understandings.
- Select rich tasks that focus on reasoning and problem solving and that require students to think deeply and express their ideas with clarity in writing and in speaking.
- Create learning environments that provide equal opportunities for all students to become mathematically literate so that they may persevere and succeed as productive members of society.
- Set high expectations for all students while providing a balance of support and challenge.
- Emphasize all three core elements of mathematical learning: conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, and application.
- Provide their students with opportunities to learn from their mistakes and improve upon their work.
Caregivers will...
- See that math goes beyond the memorization of facts and procedures; it is a web of interconnected ideas in which students think, reason, analyze, wonder, discover patterns, make connections, and solve problems.
- Recognize that reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills are necessary elements of engaging in and learning mathematics.
- Help their child understand that mistakes are a normal and valuable part of the learning process.
- Value and praise the effort their child puts into their math homework, encouraging their child to do more than just “get it done."
- Know that productive struggle is necessary for learning, the way to work through confusion is through sustained effort, and that it takes time to learn.
- Ask their child about their learning and how they’re learning and guide them toward resources that can help (their textbook, notes, online resources, and their teacher).
- Encourage their child to take responsibility for their own learning.
- Help their child understand that success comes from a focus on learning and understanding.
The Districts will...
- Cultivate a district-wide culture of mathematics education that embodies the Guiding Principles for Mathematics Programs in Massachusetts and the Standards for Mathematical Content and the Standards for Mathematical Practice (MA Frameworks 2017).
- Create and foster attitudes, cultures, and climates that support innovation in mathematics teaching and learning practices.
- Provide the curricular resources and ongoing professional development for math educators to successfully implement the vision, collaborate with their fellow education professionals, and foster continued growth as educators.
- Support the vertical and horizontal alignment of the curriculum and teaching practices to ensure continuity of content and consistent implementation of the content and practice standards.
- Support the early and continuous implementation of a systematic K-12 intervention program.
- Devote resources equitably to support students across the continuum from our most challenged learners to our highest achieving students.
- Support the ongoing work of the Math Working Group, comprised of math teaching staff from elementary, middle, and high schools, the District Curriculum Coordinator, and a member of SEPAC.