Websites and Math Documents Related to K-6 Math Curricula

This website contains information on math curricula and related matters, for example, teacher training.

Newfoundland Curriculum Documents

Readers interested in viewing documents governing the new WNCP Common Curriculum Frameworks for Mathematics (2009) promulgated by the Department of Education should go here. These documents comprise the intended curriculum in Newfoundland and Labrador and specify what is taught to NL children in each grade. Readers should compare what they see in the NL documents with the ideal curriculum described by Schmidt et al., the K-6 document for Singapore or the CCSS-M.

The CD Howe report by Anna Stokke on declining math skills can be found here.

The CD Howe report by Anna Stokke documents declining math skills in Canada as measured by the 2012 PISA results for all Canadian provinces and TIMSS results for Alberta, Ontario and Quebec. Newfoundland finished below the OECD average on PISA. Success rates on a computational item related to fractions (1/3 - 1/4) were more than 40 points higher in all the A+ countries than by the best Canadian province. This is not an insignificant difference and is relevant to NL since AL also is also a WNCP province. The report is also highly critical of the pedagogical methods promulgated by the WNCP.

The Myth of Equal Content, Wm Schmidt and L. Cogan can be obtained here.

"The Myth of Equal Content" compares learning outcomes for two school boards in the US having quite different math curiicula. One fits the mile-wide-inch-deep descriptor, the other is closer to the A+ descriptor. The relative learning outcomes are similar to those found in the international study, but the data is entirely North American and more recent.

Western Canadian (WNCP) K-6 Curriculum Issues

Readers interested in problems with the WNCP Common Curriculum Frameworks for Mathematics as implemented in Western Canada should check out the Western Initiative for Strengthening Education in Math. Two points about the WNCP K-6 math curriculum stated at the WISEMATH site:

Since not knowing facts would prevent a child from learning the standard algorithms, it seems clear why the algorithms are no longer taught. The important point is that the most recently adopted math curriculum for this province is the WNCP, a fact stated in the NL curriculum documents (see Kindergarten Mathematics Curriculum Guide - Interim, p. 1).

Comparing Direct Instruction with Other Instructional Forms

An on-line summary of Project Follow Through can be found at Athabaska University. PFT is the largest educational study to date and compares instructional techniques. Direct Instruction is found to produce the best educational outcomes for children.

Rote Learning of Math

How much rote learning, if any, should occur in a K-6 math curriculum has been a matter of great debate since the 1960's. Recent studies by cognitive psychologists establish the importance of rote learning.

Common Core State Standards for Mathematics

Here are the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSS-M) taken from the official website Standards.pdf . The CCSS-M represent an attempt to implement an A+ curriculum in the various states. It is my view that the standards still contain too many topics in K-5 to be considered an A+ curricula. Even with the additional topics, the CCSS-M would be a sustantial improvement on the current NL standards on the simple grounds that fluidity with the standard algorithms of arithmetic and completion of fractions in Grade 5 are expectations.

Implementing a new curriculum can be problematic. Information related to CCSS-M implementation issues can be found here .

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)

The NAEP is a US website that reports on educational achievement. It is the best hard data site that I know of in North America. No similar site exists for Canada.

The Education Policy Center at Michigan State University

The Education Policy Center (EPC) at Michigan State University is the home of Wm. Schmidt and colleagues. The EPC website contains information on numerous topics some of which are discussed below.

K-6 Teacher Training

Here is information on world class teacher training programs.

Teacher Evaluation Methods

Every one wants their child to be taught by the best teachers. When evidence exists that students are not learning what they should, blaming teachers is an easy solution. Here is what folks need to know about teacher evaluation.