Math Achievement

Although American students’ math achievement improved slowly between 1990 and 2013 and then plateaued, it fell back sharply during the pandemic. American 15-year-olds rank behind 30 countries and regions on one international test and fourth graders trail 14 countries on another. Math is frustrating for many students, and policymakers agree the U.S. needs to do better in the subject to remain competitive in an increasingly technical global economy. Poor math skills exacerbate inequality, prevent many students from earning high school and college degrees, shut people out of jobs and make it hard for voters to understand complex issues such as the cost of healthcare and the size of the national debt.

Latest story

Kindergarten math is often too basic. Here’s why that’s a problem

Teaching is often too focused on early skills like counting, instead of building a bridge to later math learning

The Math Problem

This back-to-school-season, the Education Reporting Collaborative, a coalition of eight newsrooms, will be documenting the enormous challenge facing our schools and highlighting examples of progress. The three-year-old Reporting Collaborative includes AL.com, The Associated Press, The Christian Science Monitor, The Dallas Morning News, The Hechinger Report, Idaho Education News, The Post and Courier in South Carolina, and The Seattle Times.

AI might disrupt math and computer science classes – in a good way

Racial gaps in math have grown. Could detracking help?

Disabilities in math affect many students — but get little attention

More stories

PROOF POINTS: Many high school math teachers cobble together their own instructional materials from the internet and elsewhere, a survey finds

Researchers say this DIY approach isn’t serving students well

PROOF POINTS: Stanford’s Jo Boaler talks about her new book ‘MATH-ish’ and takes on her critics

An academic fight reflects wider weaknesses in education research

Eliminating advanced math ‘tracks’ often prompts outrage. Some districts buck the trend 

Districts that try to ‘detrack’ — or stop sorting students by perceived ability — often face parental pushback. But a handful of districts show it can be done

PROOF POINTS: How Covid narrowed the STEM pipeline

Math scores declined for both Catholic school and high-achieving public school students

Calculating the value of data science classes

As high schools add courses that combine math, science and computer programming, there’s an emerging push to create standards

PROOF POINTS: Learning science might help kids read better

Evidence increases for building students’ background knowledge of the world

PROOF POINTS: The surprising effectiveness of having kids study why they failed

An experiment reveals that understanding your errors is more important than correcting your mistakes

Data science under fire: What math do high schoolers really need?

Defying criticism, one district says substituting data science for Algebra II has reaped rewards

How one district has diversified its advanced math classes — without the controversy

Fights over ‘detracking’ have roiled other districts. But Union Public Schools, in Oklahoma, took a middle ground, adding tutoring and non-test-based ways for students to qualify for advanced math

PROOF POINTS: How to get teachers to talk less and students more

Show them how much they actually speak, one study suggests

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