Date:
September 4, 2013
For Information: September 12, 2013
For Action:
September 26, 2013
Board Agenda: Yes
X
FROM:
Gerald Mann, Jr., Director of Middle School Instruction
DeBerry Goodwin, Principal Francis Hammond 1
Jason Sutton, Principal Francis Hammond 2
Andrea Sparks-Brown, Principal Francis Hammond 3
Greg Tardieu, Principal George Washington 1
Pierrette Hall, Principal George Washington 2
THROUGH:
GwenCarol Holmes, Ed.D., Chief Academic Officer
Margaret May Walsh, Ed.D., Acting Superintendent of Schools
TO:
The Honorable Karen Graf, Chairman, and Members of the Alexandria City
School Board
TOPIC:
Ramping up Mathematics in Middle School with Mr. Steve Leinwand
Division Goals Addressed:
1. Ensure all students demonstrate significant academic growth and dramatically improve
achievement outcomes for students below grade level.
2. Provide a rigorous, relevant, and internationally benchmarked education to enable all
students to succeed as citizens in the global community.
3. Create an exceptional learning environment.
Policy:
IGA-1 – Basic Instructional Program
JFC-R-1 – Standards of Student Conduct
GBB – Staff Involvement in Decision Making
Budget Impact: $90,000 (Transfer of funds)
BACKGROUND: Middle school math achievement has been a concern for several years
in ACPS and this year four of the five middle schools are accredited with warning in math.
The middle school math departments are largely new to ACPS with the exception of
GW1. Based on data analysis from the 2012-2013 SOLs, the middle schools need to
improve in the following areas:
 Increase conceptual understanding by students and staff
 Provide multiple representations of concepts and teach multiple ways to solve the
equation/problem
 Improve the 7th grade math pass rate (combined average pass rate of 33% for the
five schools)
 Improve the 8th grade math pass rate (combined average pass rate of 11% for the
five schools, this does not include Algebra I)
During the 2012-2013 school year, the middle schools’ efforts to improve math
achievement included in-house math workshops focused on building conceptual
understanding, strategies for making connections, asking open-ended questions and
implementing performance tasks. Follow-up on these topics varied from school to school
and the majority of the math teachers who participated in the workshops are no longer
employed by ACPS.
On October 14th, the middle school leadership in collaboration with Gerald Mann and
Steve Leinwand will conduct an intensive math workshop with all middle school math
teachers and instructional coaches. The focus of this workshop will center on the high
leverage mathematics instructional practices that “correlate with high levels of student
achievement and that should be incorporated into all mathematics instruction at all
levels.” The following are the nine high leverage mathematics instructional practices
covered in the workshop:
1. Effective teachers of mathematics respond to most student answers with “why?”,
“how do you know that?”, or “can you explain your thinking?”
2. Effective teachers of mathematics conduct daily cumulative review of critical and
prerequisite skills and concepts at the beginning of every lesson.
3. Effective teachers of mathematics elicit, value, and celebrate alternative
approaches to solving mathematics problems so that students are taught that
mathematics is a sense-making process for understanding why and not
memorizing the right procedure to get the one right answer.
4. Effective teachers of mathematics provide multiple representations.
5. Effective teachers of mathematics create language-rich classrooms that
emphasize terminology, vocabulary, explanations and solutions.
6. Effective teachers of mathematics take every opportunity to develop number
sense by asking for, and justifying, estimates, mental calculations and equivalent
forms of numbers.
7. Effective teachers of mathematics embed the mathematical content they are
teaching in contexts to connect mathematics to the real world.
8. Effective teachers of mathematics devote the last five minutes of every lesson to
some form of formative assessment.
9. Effective teachers of mathematics demonstrate through the coherence of their
instruction that their lessons – the tasks, the activities, the questions and the
assessments – were carefully planned.
Follow through on these instructional practices will occur through each school’s Content
Learning Team (CLT) or Professional Learning Community (PLC), weekly walk-throughs
of math classrooms conducted by the school principals and the Director of Middle School
Instruction, and the examination of school common assessment data. In addition, Mr.
Leinwand will conduct walk-throughs with school leadership on a regular basis.
Research indicates that there is strong evidence that effective teaching strategies are the
leverage point for making significant change in mathematics achievement for students
(Slavin, Lake, & Groff, 2010). In meta-analysis of research studies on programs for
mathematics instruction that examined mathematics curricula, computer-assisted
instruction, and instruction process, the programs designed to change daily teaching
practices have the largest and most significant impact on student achievement. The U.S.
Department of Education’s Practice Guide: Improving Mathematical Problem Solving in
Grades 4 through 8 (2012), reveals that the evidence shows that the strongest link to
improved student achievement in mathematics is through the use of specific instructional
practices. These practices include helping students monitor and reflect on the problem
solving process, use visual representations, use multiple problem-solving strategies, and
recognize and discuss mathematical concepts and notation.
Mr. Steve Leinwand promotes many of the learning objectives championed by ACPS, for
example, higher level questions, transfer tasks, connected mathematics; and he
supports the ACPS curriculum. Mr. Leinwand’s high leverage mathematical instructional
practices are perfectly aligned with the instructional practices proven effective in rigorous
studies. His support will help school leaders and mathematics teachers ensure that
instruction in ACPS middle schools includes these proven instructional practices. In
addition, Mr. Leinwand’s support would provide consistent professional learning in math
across all ACPS middle schools as he is currently working with Jefferson Houston.
SCOPE OF WORK: The scope of work for Mr. Leinwand’s support to the middle schools
will include the intensive math workshop for middle school leadership, math teachers and
instructional coaches on the nine high leverage mathematics instructional practices.
Mr. Leinwand will lead 50 classroom observations (10 per school) with the principals, and
provide coaching for teachers, instructional coaches and principals on implementing high
leverage instructional practices in the classroom and providing feedback. In addition,
Mr. Leinwand will examine CLTs/PLCs effectiveness and offer feedback on improving
collaborative practices at each school. This work will also include working with middle
school leadership to improve interventions for students who are seriously behind and
helping teacher to effectively use assessment data to inform instructional decisions.
The funding for this professional learning opportunity will be provided by the Curriculum
and Instructional budget with transfer of funds from the following categories:
 Staff Development Services
 Supplement teacher (elementary)
 Supplement teacher (secondary)
 Travel-Conference/Other Education
 Instructional supplies (textbook left over)
Compared to services provided by other consultants, Mr. Leinwand’s per diem is lower
and the proposed work is within the scope of his current contract with Jefferson Houston;
thus enabling the additional work as a rider on a contract which has already been through
the RFP process. Mr. Leinwand’s previous consultation day with ACPS secondary
schools and his familiarity with ACPS will enable him to begin his work immediately.
The contract change order (that adds this additional work by Mr. Leinwand with the
middle schools) is attached.
IMPACT: Ramping Up Mathematics will provide middle school administrators, instructional
coaches and teachers with consistent professional learning for math.
RECOMMENDATION: Approval of budget transfer of $90,000 to provide the professional
learning to middle school mathematics teachers.
CONTACT: Gerald R. Mann, Jr. and Middle School Principals
References:
National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, 2012. Improving
mathematical problem solving in grades 4 through 8. Institute of Education Sciences, U.S.
Department of Education: Washington D.C. Retrieved 9/5/13 at
http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/PracticeGuide.aspx?sid=16
Slavin, R.E.; Lake, C.; Groff, C.; 2010. Educator’s Guide What Works in Teaching Math? The
Best Evidence Encyclopedia, Johns Hopkins University. Retrieved 9/5/13 at
http://www.bestevidence.org/word/math_Jan_05_2010_guide.pdf