Success for All Foundation & Institute for Effective Education
2007-2010

RR4 interactive whiteboard development

Slavin, R., Abrami, P.C. (Concordia), Chambers, B., Madden, N., Borman, G.,& Chamberlain, A.

The mathematics performance of American students has improved in recent years, but it still remains unimpressive by international standards. For example, U.S. 15-year-olds ranked 28th on the OECD PISA study of mathematics achievement. However, the problem is not equally distributed. While many middle class schools do perform at world class standards, poor and minority students rarely perform up to their potential in mathematics. For more than a quarter century, especially since the publication of the NCTM standards in 1989, the debate in mathematics reform has revolved primarily around the content of mathematics, and changes toward more complex problem solving and understanding-oriented teaching probably account for much of the increase seen in scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (see National Center for Education Statistics, 2005). Yet mathematics reform can only go so far without significant reform in pedagogy (Slavin & Lake, 2006). This is particularly true in high-poverty elementary schools, where many teachers lack adequate preparation in mathematics and where student engagement and motivation, classroom management, and other factors may be as important as the content being taught.