Susan Hudson Hull, PhD
Charles A. Dana Center, UT Austin
(with thanks to Paula Gustafson, TEA)
Conference on the Teaching of Mathematics 6-12,
SHSU, Feb 20, 2004
Charles A. Dana Center
The University of Texas at Austin
• Resources for mathematics and
science teachers
• Resources for administrators
• Resources for districts
• Resources for higher education
To be highly qualified under
No Child Left Behind
• Teachers must have
– At least a bachelor’s degree
– Full state certification
– Demonstrated competency in the core
academic subject area assigned
To demonstrate competency
New or experienced teachers must have
– Passed ExCET or TExES OR
– For subject taught: academic major or
graduate degree or coursework equivalent to
undergraduate major OR
– (for experienced teachers) Met HOUSE
(High, Objective, Uniform Standard of
Evaluation)
Teacher Quality Grants
• TEA and Texas Higher Education Coordinating
Board, 2004-2005.
• Type A Teacher Quality awards: develop uniform
teacher training modules for mathematics and
science courses for teachers of grades 6 – 12.
• Type B TQ awards: implement the modules and
provide follow-up professional development (for
higher ed and district partners).
• Modules developed by May, 2004 for
implementation in summer institutes for teachers in
July, 2004 and following.
Teacher Quality (Part A)
Awards:
• Mathematics Leadership Professional
Development Academies for:
– Middle School Part I/II
• University of Houston
– Algebra I/II
• Charles A. Dana Center
– Geometry
• Rice University
– PreCalculus
• Texas A&M
NCLB and TAKS are our
benchmarks toward
progress, not destinations
On to college, and beyond…
What Is Important Beyond
TAKS?
• Mathematics emphasis in K-12
• Harder-to-measure skills
• Greater emphasis on planning
courses and units
• K-16 emphasis: getting them ready
for college- and life after HS in
general!
KEEP OPTIONS OPEN FOR STUDENTS!
A Shift in Teaching and Learning
Interventions based on research
Decrease:
Whole-class, teacher-directed instruction
Student passivity; silence in the classroom; and
other “seatwork”
One-way transmission of information from teacher to
student
Rote memorization of facts and details
Thinly covering large amounts of material
Tracking or leveling students into “ability groups”
Use of and reliance on standardized tests
—Zemelman, Daniels, Hyde (1998)
—Adapted from Best Practices: New Standards for Teaching
and Learning in America’s Schools, 2nd edition
A Shift in Teaching and Learning
Interventions based on research
Increase:
•Experiential, inductive, hands-on active learning
•Roles for teachers including coaching, demonstrating,
modeling, and facilitating
•Emphasis on higher-order thinking, learning key
concepts, and principles
•Deep study of a smaller number of topics
•Grouping and collaborative activities for students
•Some choice for students in how they demonstrate
learning
•Attention to the varying learning styles and other needs
of individual students
SOME degree of
standardization is necessary to
prevent wide variations in
scores. It’s only fair.
That’s what the “standards”
movement is all about!!
Collaboration
Consistency
written
curriculum
Alignment is
crucial
instruction
assessment
Encountering Resistance?
An important point to emphasize is
Teaching TEKS
Teaching TAKS
A Professional Teaching
Model (PTM)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Study the TEKS
Compare instruction, practice, materials
Select an assessment task
Plan lesson(s)
Implement the plan
Analyze results and student work
Review, revise, and begin again
Charles A. Dana Center, 2003
Mutual Accountability
• District vs. campus performance should be
considered
– Are any campuses employing test prep
strategies rather than high quality, rigorous
lessons?
• For campuses using test prep materials, evaluate
the performance of students beginning at grade 7
in the middle school: is performance still high?
• Is sacrificing quality mathematics teaching for
short term results justifiable when students fail to
meet Texas grade promotion standards and
graduation requirements?
That is, TEACH THE TEKS
Mathematics
TEKS, TAKS, and
Accountability
What is a Personal Graduation
Plan?
By Law, A High School
Personal Graduation Plan Must….

Identify educational goals for student

Include diagnostic information, monitoring &
intervention

Include intensive instruction

Provide innovative methods to promote student’s
advancement

Address participation of parent
TEC 28.0212, SB 1108, 2003
Develop Interventions for middle or high school
students who need a Personal Graduation Plan
(PGP) because of their performance
in math
PGPs are required for students who:
(1) do not perform satisfactorily on
TAKS
(2) are not likely to receive a HS
diploma before the fifth school year
following the student’s enrollment in
grade level nine TEC 28.0212 ..
When will the TAKS tests
be released?
• Legislation requires the reduction of
released tests
• Frequency will now be every other year
• SBOE release plan:
Spring 04: Grades 3,5,7,9,11, SDAA
Spring 05: Grades 4,6,8,10,RPTE
HB 3459, Section 25
What is the window for
TAKS make-ups, and how
will this work?
Students absent for the day of testing
may retest through that Saturday of
the same week.
•Who takes TAAS as the
graduation requirement?
•Who takes TAKS as the
graduation requirement?
Who gets the new Study
Guides?
Any student who failed any content
portion of the TAKS
Can they be purchased?
Yes, for $6.00
1-800-252-9186
Will there be revised
Information Booklets?
Yes, most likely in fall 2004
How many griddable items
will be on each test?
Two: one live and one field
test item
• Will items at Grade 11 be more
difficult than items at Grade 10?
• Are skills taught at a previous
grade eligible for use on a test at a
higher grade?
How/when does the
Student Success Initiative,
SSI, impact math TAKS?
5th: 2005
8th: 2008
How do people get to
serve on Item and Data
Review Committees?
Volunteer to TEA; committees
are chosen to represent the
diversity of Texas
When is Algebra II required for all?
All incoming freshman in 2004-2005
must graduate under the Recommended
High School Program.
And…
There are resources to help.
HB 1144
Algebra II (for all) Resources
(Dana Center)
• Algebra II Assessments
• Practice-based professional development
for the assessments (TEXTEAMS)
• TEXTEAMS institute
• Scope and sequence, clarifying activities
and lessons, and research links in the
Math TEKS Toolkit
• Foundations of Functions: a resource for
mathematics vertical teams
Math Models with Applications
• Is still a viable course in high school
• Should still be offered
• May still be needed by some students that
will enter as freshmen next fall
• Best case scenario: pair students in Math
Models and Algebra II (Region IV model)
Math Models Resources
(available through the Dana Center’s
Mathematics TEKS Toolkit)
• Teacher and student curriculum materials for
– Science and engineering contexts
– Entrepreneurship
– Fine arts contexts (music and geometry)
• Clarifying lessons, activities and the
Mathematics TEKS Toolkit
• TEXTEAMS institutes
Algebra I and Geometry Resources
(Dana Center)
• Algebra I and Geometry Assessments
• Practice-based professional development for the
assessments (TEXTEAMS)
• TEXTEAMS institutes
• Scope and sequence, clarifying activities and
lessons, and research links in the Math TEKS
Toolkit
• Foundations of Functions: a resource for
mathematics vertical teams
• AgileMind, Inc online resources for teachers and
students
Middle School Mathematics
Resources (Dana Center)
• Middle School Mathematics Assessments:
Proportional Reasoning (Print in 3 weeks)
• Practice-based professional development for the
assessments (TEXTEAMS)
• Standards in the Classroom 6-8
• Foundations of Functions: a resource for
mathematics vertical teams
• TEXTEAMS: Rethinking Middle School
Mathematics (6 institutes)
Can we still use the Texas
Mathematics
Diagnostic System (TMDS)
Yes; it’s funded for the biennium
www.accesstmds.com
CAMT 2004
San Antonio
Strengthening Texas Through Mathematics
July15-17, 2004
Henry B. Gonzales
Convention Center
TAKS Preconference
July 13 & 14, 2004
Mathematics TEKS Toolkit
www.mathtekstoolkit.org
The Math TEKS Toolkit, from the Dana
Center, continues to be a great resource
for studying the TEKS, choosing
assessments, and creating lessons
(check out Supporting TEKS and TAKS)
Mathematics List Serve
www.tea.state.tx.us/list/
Searching for the latest information in
mathematics and student assessment?
Join the list serve today!
What lies behind us and what lies before
us are tiny matters compared to what lies
within us.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
Contact Information
Susan Hudson Hull
Charles A. Dana Center, Mathematics Director
512.475.8153
shhull@mail.utexas.edu
Paula Gustafson
TEA Curriculum and Professional Development
512.463.9585
pgustafs@tea.state.tx.us
Presentation available under Resources:
www.mathtekstoolkit.org