The fight to restore real math to PWC schools took a few solid hits recently. On March 4th the school board voted 4 / 4 against offering choice to parents and on March 12th the board voted 4 / 4 in favor of expanding Investigations to the 5th grade. The net effect is that PWC elementary schools will be continuing to teach all Investigations all the time next year.
There is a glimmer of hope, however. The board did authorize a blended approach to math the 4th. While the approach changes little, it does compel Principals to work with parents to implement balanced, blended programs at their schools, stipulates that schools are to provide both Investigations workbooks and traditional textbooks to students as needed, allows teachers to adapt lesson pacing and select alternate materials as they believe necessary for their students, and provides for differentiated instruction for students who need it.
While this “new” approach varies little from the approach currently in effect, we are hopeful that it will allow schools enough wiggle room that they will be able to provide our children with the math education they deserve.
What do we do now?
New Article - The Latest News on Bringing Real Math back to PWC Elementary Schools
The Blended Approach
We start, with the motion itself. By authorizing this motion, the school board declared Open Season in PWC Elementary Schools.
If your child attends one of the 31 elementary schools whose test scores dropped under Investigations, you may want to contact your school Principal and find our why the school isn’t feeling the love for MI the way the school board says it should be.
Contact You Child’s Principal
Read What to do and contact your school Principal and child’s teacher to discuss their plans for providing differentiated instruction for YOUR child. This step is of utmost importance because the school board’s intent was to give local schools greater autonomy to adapt the program than they currently have.
Organize
Organize with other concerned parents in your local schools. It’s much more difficult for a school to blow off an organized group of parents than individuals. More on that later.
Teach Your Child Real Math At Home
The most important thing you can do is recognize that very little will change in the near future and you need to take responsibility for teaching your child math. And not just giving them a few worksheets to do – really teaching them with a structured, integrated program.
There are many different home programs available, some more expensive than others. Most can be completed with 30 to 45 mins of work a few times a week. You’ll need to purchase one and follow it, because responsibility for teaching your children math now rests with you.
3 responses so far ↓
Ed // January 23, 2009 at 12:39 pm |
I agree with some parents that forcing the traditional schools to be traditional only would raise some issues; especially at Porter where the principle is so clearly siding with the math department.
Offering the choice option in that situation will be hard enough; unless the SOL results show more clearly that MI is not doing the job, the board won’t boot it all together.
Schools that know what they are doing will fill the gap in the run up so that doesn’t happen although the advance pass rates are already lagging.
As grade 5 may be off the table, opt-in would only be k-4.
David // February 22, 2009 at 9:29 am |
The opt-in is my preferred choice as it would get my child out of MI altogether.
The true blended approach is only going to help if the math dept are not setting the lesson plans as they are so dedicated to MI.
I also think the percentage of MI investigative sessions should decrease as the kids get older and need more challenge. Additional MI could be provided in core extension for any kids that are struggling to get it as could additional challenge for those who already got it.
Carol Alderete // February 24, 2009 at 6:41 am |
After living in several different states and having children in various math programs I feel the investigations program has set my children back with their math skills. My oldest in in high school and when he helped his elementary siblings with their math he just couldn’t believe how they were being taught. My children could easily add, subtract in their heads before moving to VA now rely on counting blocks and drawing pictures to figure out problems, please change to a traditional approach. I do not feel the investigations program benefits anyone.
Thank you
Carol Alderete