Although nearly 40 percent of Washington high school students have been unable to pass a test based on the state’s guidelines for teaching math, a new report is calling for even tougher standards.
The analysis of Washington’s math standards says that compared with other high-achieving states and countries, Washington is not expecting enough of its students, some subjects are not being taught early enough, there’s insufficient emphasis on teaching the mechanics of math, and some of the learning expectations are not clear.
The draft report was to be discussed today at a Washington State Board of Education meeting in Spokane, and be available for public discussion at a series of focus groups open to the public over the next few weeks.
“The bottom line is that Washington’s math standards need to be strengthened,” wrote Linda Plattner of the Maryland-based educational research firm Strategic Teaching, which was hired by the state to assess its math expectations. “If mathematics is the gateway to student success in higher education and the workplace, Washington is getting too few of its students to and through the door.”
The report says Washington is moving in the right direction, as more students are passing the math section of the Washington Assessment of Student Learning, but there’s still plenty of work to do. As of this June, about 39 percent of the class of 2008 had not yet passed the math section of the WASL.
State schools chief Terry Bergeson said the substantial changes recommended in the report were “pretty overwhelming” at first, but after talking to Plattner and participating in a discussion about the report she felt more comfortable with the suggestions.
The report is one part of a Legislature-assigned project to revisit the 10-year-old math section of the Essential Academic Learning Requirements.
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