A National Study of Early Elementary Math Curricula

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education

A large proportion of U.S. elementary school students show mastery of only rudimentary mathematics and only a small proportion achieve at high levels. In addition, elementary school students from poor families have substantially lower math scores than their advantaged peers.

What is taught to students and how it is taught may be important factors in a school’s ability to improve student math achievement. A small number of curricula dominate elementary math instruction and the curricula are based on different theories for developing student math skills. However, there is little rigorous research evidence to support one theory or curriculum over another. This lack of information was recognized in discussions by the National Assessment of Title I Independent Review Panel in December 2004 and was recently reiterated by the National Math Panel in 2008. Given the fact that only a small fraction of this country’s students are judged as proficient in mathematics and the lack of rigorous information available, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) decided to sponsor an evaluation of mathematics curricula.

The study is funded by Title I, which aims to improve academic achievement of disadvantaged students. ED’s Institute for Education Sciences selected Mathematica Policy Research, and its subcontractors, SRI International and Coffey Communications, to conduct the Evaluation of Mathematics Curricula—a large-scale rigorous study that will select, implement, and evaluate the relative effects of four early elementary math curricula that use varying approaches to math instruction. A competitive process was used to select the curricula, and 12 districts and 111 schools throughout the country implemented the curricula during the 2006-2007, 2007-2008, and 2008-2009 school years. The study team administered standardized tests to students, surveyed teachers, observed teacher curricula training, and observed classroom instruction.

Click here for more information on the evaluation.