"There is a mathematically correct solution" This web site is devoted to the concerns raised by parents and scientists about the invasion of our schools by the New-New Math and the need to restore basic skills to math education. Mathematically Correct is the informal, nationwide organization that fights the Establishment on behalf of sanity and quality in math education. -- David Gelernter, NY Post Mathematics achievement in America is far below what we would like it to be. Recent "reform" efforts only aggravate the problem. As a result, our children have less and less exposure to rigorous, content-rich mathematics . The advocates of the new, fuzzy math have practiced their rhetoric well. They speak of higher-order thinking, conceptual understanding and solving problems, but they neglect the systematic mastery of the fundamental building blocks necessary for success in any of these areas. Their focus is on things like calculators, blocks, guesswork, and group activities and they shun things like algorithms and repeated practice. The new programs are shy on fundamentals and they also lack the mathematical depth and rigor that promotes greater achievement. Concerned parents are in a state of dismay and have begun efforts to restore content, rigor, and genuinely high expectations to mathematics education. This site provides relevant background and information for parents, teachers, board members and the public from around the country. Site Index Hot Topics An Open Letter in Support of California's Standards System for K-12 Education In an open letterdated July 7, 2006, former governors Gray Davis and Pete Wilson expressed unambiguous support for California's K-12 academic content standards, curriculum frameworks, instructional materials, and tests aligned to the standards. They warned that dismantling California's system for K-12 education would be a disastrous step backward. Save Our Children from Mediocre Math Save Our Children from Mediocre Math (SOCMM) is a non partisan organization that advocates ensuring Conejo Valley Unified School District parents have a choiceto have students instructed in mathematics using a State Board of Education approved curriculum. Kids Do Count! Great Connected Math News! We know of two Alpine Jr. High Schools that have completely thrown out Connected Mathematics(excepting one teacher) because it failed so badly! Rebuttal to Johnny Lott's "Stalkers" Johnny Lott's condemnation of the open letter as a form of "stalking" appears to be an attempt to side step legitimate criticisms of the current direction of mathematics education in the United States. California's Algebra Crisis California has had its share of educational crises—such as whole language and fuzzy math. Despite recent improvements, the state is still in the grips of an algebra crisis. Review of the Interactive Mathematics Program (requires Adobe Reader) IMP is a program designed to retain the attention of students who will either not attend college or will major in non math fields. It lacks the depth of study for students who will study math in college. It is not a college prep math curriculum. NYC HOLD (Honest Open Logical Debate on Mathematics Education Reform) Web Site NYC HOLD is a nonpartisan advocacy organization that provides parents, educators, mathematicians and other concerned citizens opportunities to work together to improve the quality of mathematics education in the New York City schools. We have followed our children's experience and progress in NCTM Standards-based mathematics programs and have grown increasingly concerned. We have studied the materials and teaching approaches in our children's schools. Some of us have researched the programs and their use in other regions and found that we are not alone in our concerns, rather, our experiences and worries are shared by parents across the country. We have been dismayed and frustrated by teachers' reports that their hands are tied, that they're not free to teach with the materials and methods they believe best suited for our children. We have learned that mathematicians and scientists have confirmed our suspicions that the programs lack adequate skills development, important topics, and the rigor necessary to prepare our children for advanced high school math and science courses and pursuit of college math-based courses and majors. Is Los Angeles dictating bad use of a good math book? Is LA turning a silk purse into a sow's ear? An Open Letter to the superintendent and school Board suggests LA's Algebra I pacing plan is disastrous and undermines both the California math standards and state approved textbooks. A Plan for Improving the Quality of Exposition in High School Mathematics by Frank B. Allen In order to raise the level of student achievement in secondary school mathematics, which everyone agrees is urgently necessary, there must be major improvements in the expository procedures employed by teachers. How the NCEE Redefines K-12 Math: An Analysis of the NCEE Math Performance Standards by Bill Quirk The NCEE is satisfied with entry level math. Their "vision" is limited to the needs of everyday life. The concept of prerequisite knowledge is never mentioned. They're not concerned with setting the stage for learning more advanced math. Many of their high school math examples belong at the elementary school level. They claim to emphasize conceptual understanding, but give no evidence that they understand how math ideas are connected. They appear blind to the vertically-structured nature of the math knowledge domain. Mathematics Education in California ● The California Mathematics Standards ● Mathematics Framework for California Public Schools: Kindergarten through Grade Twelve [requires Adobe Acrobat reader] ● Practice Problems for the California Mathematics Standards Grades 1-8 [requires Adobe Acrobat reader] ● More about California A review of Geometry: tools for a changing world David E. Joyce provides this review of the Prentice-Hall Geometry text, noting ... It's the content that bothers me, in particular, the lack of logical content.The review covers each chapter in a way that is especially informative for those required to use this text. Does Two Plus Two Still Equal Four? What Should Our Children Know about Math? Despite efforts to improve mathematics education in the United States, the August 2001 National Assessment of Educational Progress report found that a majority of children are still unable to perform at a basic level in mathematics and that an achievement gap between white and minority students continues to persist in that subject. The link provides information and transcript of the seminar at AEI. Stand and Deliver Revisited by Jerry Jesness The untold story behind the famous rise -- and shameful fall -- of Jaime Escalante, America’s master math teacher. TERC Hands-On Math: A Snapshot View by Bill Quirk A review of the TERC (Investigations in Number, Data, and Space) mathematics program shows: ❍ TERC Omits All Standard Computational Methods ❍ TERC Omits Standard Formulas ❍ TERC Omits Standard Terminology Also read the full report, TERC Hands-On Math: The Truth is in the Details. A Brief History of American K-12 Mathematics Education in the 20th Century by David Klein Mathematics education policies and programs for U.S. public schools have never been more contentious than they were during the decade of the 1990s. The immediate cause of the math wars of the 90s was the introduction and widespread distribution of new math textbooks with radically diminished content, and a dearth of basic skills. This led to organized parental rebellions and criticisms of the new math curricula by mathematicians and other professionals. New Front in the New York City Math Wars In NYC, organized parent and teacher opposition to the new math programs began in District 2, one of the city's best; and now extends to District 3, District 10 and District 15. Bronx high school teachers have organized to express opposition to next years' requirement they use only the Interactive Mathematics Project (IMP), an experimental high school math program. The teachers worry the program lacks important mathematical content necessary to prepare large numbers of their students for the Regents A exam and college level coursework. The new programs, many without student texts, are based on a "constructivist" teaching philosophy, which discourages teachers from teaching mathematical rules and procedures. Instead, teachers guide students, through group activities, to their own "discovery" of personal solutions. Students are encouraged to seek help from each other, rather than from the teacher. Content Review of CPM Mathematics A point by point review of CPM Mathematics vis-a-vis the California Standards. Much of Volume 1 actually detracts from developing algebraic competence. Almost all of the mathematical content is at the level of the Grade 7 standards or below ... This is not algebra and it is not college preparatory math, no matter what it calls itself. Eventually, Volume 2 starts teaching some algebra but it is too little and too late. California Mathematics Program Adoptions for 2001 The list of K-8 programs approved by the State Board of Education on January 10, 2001. These programs were seen as the best fit to the state Mathematics Standards[.pdf file 504k] and the guidelines in the Mathematics Framework[.pdf file 1748k]. California State Adopted Middle School Math Programs This site provides reviews of textbooks adoped in California for middle school, including texts in algebra 1.