DOCUMENT RESUME ED 333 089 UD 028 112 AUTHOR Webb, Norman L.; And Others TITLE The Urban Mathematics CollaborativeProject: Report to the Ford Foundation on the 1988-89School Year. Program Report 90-1. INSTITUTION Wisconsin Center for Education Research,Madison. SPONS AGENCY Ford Foundation, New York, N.Y. PUB DATE Mar 90 NOTE 490p.; For related documents, see UD028 110-111. PUB TYPE Reports - Evaluative/Feasibility (142) EDRS PRICE MF02/PC20 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Collegiality; Cooperation; *CooperativePrograms; Elementary Secondary Education; *Mathematics Teachers; *Professional Development; *Program Administration; Program Evaluation;*Teacher Improvement; *Urban Schools IDENTIFIERS *Collaboratives ABSTRACT This report documents and evaluatesthe activities of the Urban Mathematics Collaborative (UMC)project during the 1988-89 school year. UMC seeks toimprove mathematics educationin inner-city schools and identify new models forthe professional developmentof mathematics teachers by supportingcollaboration among mathematics teachers and mathematicians frominstitutions of higher learningand industry. Teachers are encouraged toidentify with and participatein a broad-based local mathematics community.The project is currently operating in 11 cities across thecountry. A variety of qualitative and quantitative methodswere used to evaluate the project.Me following summary findingsare presented:(1) the Education Development Center (EDC),a nonprofit research and development organization, assumed more responsibilityfor management of the project, freeing the technicalassistance component and the outreach component to spend more time helpingindividual sites with substantive problems; (2) individualcollaboratives began to view themselves as members of a larger networkthat could accomplish greater goals as a result of constantpressure from EDC;(3) individual sites need to develop firmermanagement structures; and (4) the sites did achievesome common goals because of the unifying focus provided by EDC and becausemany sites had resolved basic issues of finance and organization.Descriptions of the 11 UMC collaboratives are included. Alist of 10 references andsummary reports frcm the 11 collaborativesare appended. (FMW) **************************************************************** ******* Reproductions supplied by EDRSare the best that can be made from the original document. *** ******* ********** ****************** ******** ****** ******************* Icoz March 1990 Icez Program Report 904 iThe Urban Mathematics I Collaborative Project: PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY I Report to the Ford 7 I 1.-. Foundationonthe 70 THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES I INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)" 1988-89 School Year U S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION f r:OCAnC)NA, Pr >t":KIP(7.E".. !NF ORMATfON CE NTF p ,F Rtc: , 3c:r,S do,L,,t4.,,?Sasi,eet,er,,,,d,. ed as p( ta,vellf rf .rt!0. , sr -,ro rvga,zat,D, -.,,,cknal.,0 ,I I ,. Mnr ,r r nangPS ',Av.. two, rnacje Tc..,r),(,re rriPiAdk,!,i71",e1LojiITy Norman L. Webb, Susan D. Pittelman, , ,,,,.,r,f ,te.s. c, op,,,or s slatecl ,,h,s lor k, I Thomas A. Romberg, Allan J. Pitman, n''^I lc, "(1 ,`Pet.,$.a.'y ,r;,ese,'..'ff.( ,af 4 ..... James A. Middleton, Elizabeth M. Fadell, fof I ("0 and Marilyn Sapienza ..., MMIII101.61010.. All Wisconsin Center for Education Research School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison PEST COPY AVAILABLE Program Report 90-1 THE URBAN MATHEMATICS COLLABORATIVE PROJECT: REPORT TO THE FORD FOUNDATION ON THE 19E8-89 SCHOOL YEAR Norman L. Webb, Susan D. Pittelman, Thomas A. Romberg Allan J. Pitman, James A. Middleton, Elizabeth M. Fade 11, and Marilyn Sapienza Report from the Urban Mathematics Collaborative Documentation Project Wisconsin Center for Education Research School of Education University of Wisconsin Madison, Wisconsin March 1990 or, We gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Dianne Paley and Kay Schultz in the preparation of this report. The research reported in this paper was supported by the Ford Foundation a n d by the Wisconsin Center for Education Research, School of Education, University of Wisconsin- Madison. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Ford Foundation or the Wisconsin Center for Education Research. 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page OVER VIEW L Introduction 1 Project Descriptions 7 Cleveland Collaborative for Mathematics Education (C2ME) 8 Durham Collaborative: The Durham Mathematics Council 10 Los Angeles Urban Mathematics/Science/Technology Collaborative 12 Memphis Urban Mathematics Collaborative 14 New Orleans Mathematics Collaborative (NOMC) 16 Philadelphia Math Science Collaborative 18 Pittsburgh Mathematics Collaborative 20 St. Louis Urban Mathematics Collaborative 22 San Diego Urban Mathematics Collaborative 24 San Francisco Mathematics Collaborative 26 Twin Cities Urban Mathematics Collaborative 28 The UMC Network 31 Ford Foundation 33 Technical Assistance Project (TAP) 34 Outreach Project 50 Documentation Project 53 Reflections 57 IV. Observations and Reflections 59 Project Management 59 Collaboration 63 Professionalism 64 Mathematics Focus 65 References 67 APPENDIXES Summary Reports for the Eleven Urban Mathematics Collaboratives A. Cleveland Collaborative for Mathematics Education (C2ME) A- 1 B. Durham Collaborative: The Durham Mathematics Council B- I C. Los Angeles Urban Mathematics/Science/Technology Collaborative C- I D. Memphis Urban Mathematics Collaborative D- 1 E. New Orleans Mathematics Collaborative (NOMC) E- 1 F.Philadelphia Math Science Collaborat:ve F- 1 G. Pittsburgh Mathematics Collaborative 0- 1 H. St. Louis Urban Mathematics Collaborative H- 1 I.San Diego Urban Mathematics Collaborative I- I J.San Francisco Mathematics Collaborative J- 1 K. Twin Cities Urban Mathematics Collaborative K- 1 6 I. INTRODUCTION In 1984, the Ford Foundation initiated the Urban Mathematics Collaborative (UMC) project to improve mathematics education in inner-city schools and to identify new models for meeting the ongoing professional needs of teachers.In February. 1985, the Ford Foundation awarded five grants to establish urban mathematics collaboratives in Cleveland, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and San Francisco.In addition, the Ford Foundation established a Documentation Project to monitor the activities of the new collaboratives and a Technical Assistance Project (TAP) to serve as a source of information for the collaborative projects (Romberg & Pitman, 1985). During the next 18 months, UMC projects were funded in Durham, Pittsburgh, St In Diego, St. Louis, Memphis, and New Orleans, bringing to 11 the total number of urban mathematics collaboratives (Romberg, Webb, Pitman, & Pittelman, 1987; Webb, Pittelman, Romberg, Pitman, & Williams, 1988; Webb, Pittelman, Romberg, Pitman, Fade 11, & Middleton, 1989).In August, 1987, an Outreach Project was funded to publicize and expand the UMC effort. A map of the UMC project appears in Figure 1. In each of the 11 cities, the UMC project continues o support collaboration among mathematics teachers, and between teachers and other mathematicians from institutions of higher education and industries, and to encourage teacher membership and participation in a broad-based local mathematics community. Since the project's inception in 1984, it has become clear that the teacher is and will remain the hub of the educational process. But it also has become evident that many teachers--and especially those in inner-city schoolsare overworked, lacking in support and material resources, and isolated from their colleagues, from other professionals, and from the rapidly changing field of mathematics. The collaborative project remains rooted in the premise that collegiality among professional mathematicians can reduce teachers' sense of isolation, foster their professional enthusiasm, expose them to a vast array of new developments and trends in mathematics, and encourage innovation in classroom teaching. The Ford Foundation's concomitant commitment of human and financial resources provides a support network to allow such collegiality to take place. 1 2 The Urban Mathematics Collaborative Project Funded by The Ford Foundation Tochnical Assistanc & Outreach Projects MInneapolls-St Paul Education Devlopment Cnter, Inc. Documentation Proksct Afr Newton, MA WCER University of Wisconsin-Madi o lPhiladelphia 141:611Pittsburgh Durham San Diego 11111 Los Angeles San Francisco New Orleans Cleveland Collaborative for Mathematics Education (C2ME) Cleveland, Ohio Durham Collaborative: The Durham Mathematics Council Durham, North Carolina Los Angeles Urban Mathematics/SciencefTechnology Collaborative (LAUM/S/TC) Los Angeles, California Memphis Urban Pathematics Collaborative Memphis, Tennessee New Orleans Mathematics Collaborative (NOMC) New Orleans, Louisiana Philadelphia Math Science Collaborative Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh Mathematics Collaborative Pittsburg, Ponnsylvania St. Louis Urban Mathematics Collaborative St. Louis, Missouri San Diego Urban Mathematics Collaborative San Diego, California San Francisco Mathematics Collaborative San Francisco, California Twin Cities Urban Mathematics Collaborative Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota Figure 1. The Ford Foundation National Network of Urban Mathematics Collaboratives. 3 An important element of the network is the administrative support provided by the Technical Assistance Project, the Outreach Project, the Documentation Project and the Ford Foundation. The Technical Assistance