Mathematically Correct
Updated Jan. 27, 1998
Mathematically Correct will be the first to admit that the process of developing standards of learning in mathematics got off to a rough start in San Diego -- and that is putting it mildly.
The first effort
The story begins nearly two years ago with district efforts to develop standards of learning. About a year elapsed by the time these standards made their way to the Board of Education. As noted by Mathematically Correct at that time, there were substantial inadequacies in the district product. For example:
For more complete details of that era, see the Mathematically Correct report on the San Diego Standards Draft. On October 22, 1996, the draft came before the Board of Education. In spite of criticism in public testimony and from every member of the Board, the document was approved as a Consultation Draft. Nonetheless, it was clear that substantial improvement in the standards was required. Constant reminders of the draft status were needed as rumors kept circulating that San Diego had an approved set of standards.
The plan emerges
The next chapter of the saga was reported on Feb. 17, 1997 by Mathematically Correct. The district plan for the development of standards had been released, but essentially no progress had been made since the meeting the prior October. The plan at that point was to stage an effort to produce grade level standards by June 22, 1997. Mathematically Correct was critical of the plan for several reasons, including:
The work finally starts
On April 7, 1997, the first meeting was held in a renewed effort to produce standards for the district. The June 22nd date was still in force, so the standards development teams were given five weeks to produce the documents. In the end, over 200 individuals worked on standards in several subject areas. These teams included parents, community members, teachers and administrators. Although the time line was unrealistic, the team members should be commended for their dedication to the task at hand.
The new drafts are released
Starting in the middle of September, 1997 (not quite on time), the second generation of standards drafts began to be released. These were distributed to schools in various subsets. Some parents were notified through their students that the drafts were available for inspection at the schools, but this process was inconsistent. Newspaper reports advised other parents of the draft standards, and the district held a series of meetings to solicit comments from parents and community members.
The draft standards for mathematics and other subject areas are available on the Internet [note: the math standards alone are nearly 200k, so downloads take a while]. The Drafts were presented to the Board of Education in November, 1997. The Board gave the green light for the Mathematics Committee to complete their work. Revisions in reaction to incoming evaluations were made by committee.
The Standards are Presented to the Board
The Mathematics Committee submitted their revised standards to the Board on Jan. 27, 1998. In stark contrast to the reactions when the first set of standards were initially presented to the Board, comments of Board members were quite positive this time.
The improvements over the earlier attempt at mathematics standards are striking. The recommendations from Mathematically Correct and the development of standards at the state level were given careful attention in the development process. There is no question about the high-level of the resulting draft standards.
In her report to the Board, Jean Slattery, consultant, offered the following recommendation:
Believe It Or Not, San Diego Has Made Real Progress
The new mathematics standards are much more explicit and give year by year (or course by course) expectations. Interested readers are encouraged to download the standards and judge the progress in San Diego for themselves.
The development of mathematics standards for San Diego required a long and difficult process. Board members, district staff, and parents should be commended for their efforts. Shortly, the Board will vote on the adoption of these standards.
But, the rocky road to mathematics standards for San Diego is nothing compared to the difficulty of raising student achievement to meet the standards. Adoption of these standards is not the end of the story, it is the beginning of a long struggle to the top.
Board Approves Comprehensive Mathematics Standards
The San Diego school board gave final approval to the Mathematics Standards in their regular meeting on Feb. 10, 1998. The vote was unanimous, as was the feeling that the district standards spell out a high level of achievement that will require a rigorous math education for the students of San Diego.
Meanwhile, the board struggles with one of the implementation problems -- setting promotion requirements for various grades and their implementation dates. The board is committed to bringing intermediate algebra to 8th grade students as soon as possible. There are will be dramatic consequences for the district:
After years of effort, San Diego has finally taken a first step toward more effective education in mathematics. The goals are now established. Whether or not the district can meet these goals remains to be seen. But, at long last, there is hope ...