Themes in Teaching Math in Urban Schools

Steve Bergen

Useful Links

• Motivational Strategies for Underachieving Math Students ... click here for the article by Anne McCall, Mathematics Instructor (Champaign, Central High School, Champaign, Illinois) ... this article includes mention of The Kay Toliver Mathematics Program in East Harlem
• Web site called http://urbanmath.org/: click ... focused on Fostering "Mathematical Practices" in Urban Classrooms ... principal investigator is Despina A. Stylianou from The City College of New York and The Graduate Center (CUNY)
• Advancing African-American, "Urban Youth in Mathematics, Unpacking the Success of One Math Department" ... one source: click to read the abstract only for the research paper by Rochelle Gutiérrez (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
• Kay Toliver was a key note speaker at the April 8, 2006 Black Educators' Alliance of Massachusetts Annual Conference ... click
• High Expectations: A "How" of Achieving Equitable Mathematics Classrooms Idorenyin Jamar, Vanessa R Pitts. July 2005 ... click here for this succint 9 page article.
• Standards-Based Interventions in Elementary Mathematics from Marika Ginsburg-Block, Department of Educational Psychology, University of Minnesota ... click here
• TIMSS stands for Trends in International Mathmatics and Science Study ... click ... suggested by Betsy from Hyde Charter Schoool ... contains a very neat "Dare to Compare" online quiz with grade 4 and grade 8 math questions ... click ... TIMSS is run by US Dept of Education
• The Algebra Project by Robert Moses and others ... click here ... thanks to Dan McDonough from Portsmouth Abbey for this wonderful link ... their mission statement (on their Web site) states:

  The Algebra Project is a national network of sites striving to improve mathematics achievement for African American and other minority students who have not been reached by existing efforts at education reform through materials development, teacher training, peer education, and school-community partnerships. We work with local people, using math literacy to demonstrate that it is possible to provide quality education for all children. We engage communities to use the success of these local projects to advocate for national education reform.

People and Programs

• EQUALS ... designed in 1977 at UC Berkeley as a gender equity program ... click
• Family Math ... 1981 ...click
• PUMP ... Pittsburgh Urban Mathematics Project ... click
• IMP ... Interactive Mathematics Program began in California but is now nationwide ... click
• Jaime Escalante ... East Los Angeles ...click
• Kay Toliver ... East Harlem ... click

Summary of Best Practices

• Link math to other subjects and real-world applications
• Develop a culturally relevant pedagogy (reform-oriented instructional practices -- cooperative learning, use of technology, relevant materials)
• Increase technology
• Inspire students to succeed (an active commitment to students)
• Focus on the NCTM Curriculum and Evaluation Standards (1989) rather than rote drills
• In 2000, NCTM revised the math standards ... click ... to include the importance of high expectations for all students
• Diversify Teaching Strategies
• High expectations from the teacher (presenece of a rigorous curriculum and the support to maneuver through it)
• Teacher collegiality and collaboration

More In Depth Comments on each Item Above

• Link math to other subjects and real-world applications
• Develop a culturally relevant pedagogy ... Gutiérrez talks about the importance of teachers attending to students' lives outside of the classroom
• Increase technology
• Inspire students to succeed
• Focus on the NCTM Curriculum and Evaluation Standards (1989) rather than rote drills
• Diversify Teaching Strategies ... Gutiérrez cites the importance of working in groups
• High expectations from the teacher
• Teacher collegiality ... Gutiérrez cites sources to suggest that "when teachers belong to a community that collectively shares the responsibility for teaching lower-level courses and actively discusses strategies ... they seem ot develop the philosophy and skills"