The COVID-19 global pandemic has required everyone to make sense of data about community spread, levels of risk, and vaccine efficacy. Yet research shows that students are underprepared in data literacy. Tanya LaMar and Jo Boaler argue that data science education provides an opportunity to address this problem while providing much needed updates…

Past educational reforms have failed because they didn't meet teachers where they were. They expected major changes in practices that may have been unrealistic for many teachers even under ideal professional learning conditions. Instead of promoting broad scale changes, improvement may be more likely if they are composed of small yet powerful…

ELLs need to practice using the language in their speech. Teachers can ask students to restate the definition in their own words and provide opportunities for students to use academic vocabulary in discussions. Chunking (instead of teaching inch in isolation, also teach foot, centimeter, and yard) helps students develop their schema and mentally…

Presents findings from studies of the ways teachers teach math. Most teachers do not use an extended development component in math lessons. Describes an inservice training model that can improve the performance of teachers and their students. Includes references. (MD)

Despite a 1986 National Council of Teachers of Mathematics recommendation calling for the inclusion of calculators in all aspects of math instruction, most math departments have an unwritten rule restricting classroom use of calculators. Teachers must accommodate the new essential skills, even if it means eliminating traditional practices.…

Too many approaches to mathematics instruction at the elementary level focus only on the production of correct answers rather than on the development of mathematical thinking skills. Author urges encouragement of children's own thought processes. (Author/PGD)

A fun logic game to introduce several classes of sixth-graders to advanced mathematical thinking allows even students who previously fared poorly in math to arrive at the destination with their peers. (Author/MLF)

Children who come to school without numerical game-playing experience have trouble with math relationships in direct-instruction situations. This article explores the varied roles of active thinking, social interaction, previous knowledge, and child-initiated choice in children's development of math concepts. Self-esteem cannot be built by doing…

Our highly technological society requires that all students be empowered to use mathematics to defend their rights and see behind political control agendas. Situations (such as computer-modeling decisions) are often "mathematicized" to stifle those unable to construct their own mathematically based arguments. African-American students…

In this article, the author shares a decade's worth of experience in developing an approach to teaching math to upper-elementary and middle school students that simultaneously increases basic skills, improves problem solving, raises test scores, and sparks student interest in math. Sections include: (1) Background Of Supermath; (2) Description Of…

One of the most hotly contested issues in mathematics education today is the use of calculators in elementary schools. The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) has gone on record recommending the use of calculators in the earliest grades. NCTM's recommendation that calculators be introduced under the guidance of skilled teachers is…