State to OK Math Books Geared to Tough Standards

Putting a key piece of California’s school accountability puzzle into place, the State Board of Education is expected today to approve textbooks geared to rigorous math standards.

Even before the vote, however, the topic is generating controversy, as is often the case when the subject of math instruction arises in California.

One key source of contention is a highly sophisticated program called Everyday Mathematics, which Los Angeles Unified, among other districts, is considering using in its elementary schools.

The Curriculum Commission, which advises the board, has recommended rejection of Everyday Mathematics for kindergarten through third grade, but teachers and professors have rated it positively.

Some of the state’s leading authorities in math content fear that most California teachers are not yet up to the task of teaching the challenging program, which is replete with interesting but unusual content. For example, the program advocates the extensive use of calculators for children as young as kindergartners and harks back to ancient Egypt for tips on arithmetic.

Teachers, however, have felt frustrated at the absence of state-approved materials. They are under pressure to bring up students’ performance on the Stanford 9, which tests basic skills in math and reading. Increasingly, the state is also testing the students on standards beyond basic skills.

Delaine Eastin, state superintendent of public instruction, is urging the board to adopt the program, as is the California Math Council, the state’s branch of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

Although the adoption of textbook materials might seem arcane, it is closely watched by teachers, superintendents and publishers. In California, textbooks are big business. This year alone, public schools will have $415 million in state funds to spend on instructional materials, most of which must be from state-approved lists. Many districts have held off buying math textbooks until the board’s vote.

These materials are designed to prepare students for key elements of the state’s new high-stakes accountability system. Beginning with the Class of 2004, for example, students will have to pass a high school exit exam loaded with algebra questions to receive a diploma.

In many classrooms, teachers have been forced to cobble together math programs from a variety of sources.

“These elementary teachers have been struggling for the past three years since the standards were adopted to put together a math program,” said Joan Commons, a regional leader for the California Math Council who teaches at UC San Diego. “The board has to give us a choice of good materials.”

In the council’s view, Everyday Mathematics is one of the better programs. Developed by the University of Chicago School Mathematics Project, it is published by Everyday Learning Corp. in Chicago. The program has garnered good reviews in Poway, Glendale and dozens of other districts.

Jim Milgram, a Stanford math professor who has become embroiled in the state’s quest for better math instruction, said he had no quibbles with the quality of Everyday Math.

“Even though it doesn’t align well with the state standards, we felt it was a program that California should have available,” he said.

However, evaluators said in a report to the Curriculum Commission: “With a good teacher it could be a highly successful program. With a weak teacher it could be a disaster.”

Math has long been a contentious issue in the state and the nation. As California was developing standards in 1997, educators and others debated what sort of mathematics should be taught.

As in reading, with its whole language versus phonics debate, math too had traditionalists versus reformers. The reformers favored more conceptual thinking, whereas traditionalists sought a back-to-basics approach focused on repetition and memorization that would provide children with foundational skills.

With the adoption of challenging standards three years ago, California launched itself on a bold new path that emphasized algebra as a prerequisite for success in life.

Recognizing that instruction was not up to snuff, Gov. Gray Davis began pouring millions of dollars into training and other incentives for math teachers. For this year’s budget, he is calling for $380 million to be spent on a variety of public school initiatives, including a new teacher training program and improvements in algebra instruction.

Several elementary and middle school math programs appear to face smooth sailing with the board today because of favorable evaluations from content reviewers and teachers. (The board does not adopt materials for high schools, which are free to make their own choices.) The programs include:

Harcourt Math @ 2002; Mathematics by Houghton Mifflin; McDougal Littell’s Structure and Method as well as Concepts and Skills; Prentice Hall’s Pre-Algebra and Algebra I; Sadlier-Oxford’s Progress in Mathematics; Scott, Foresman’s California Mathematics; and CSL Associates’ Success With Mathcoach. The Curriculum Commission has also recommended McGraw-Hill’s Mathematics.

The board usually follows the commission’s recommendations.