South City tables math changes 

The recommendation came from the district’s Department of Educational Services including Assistant Superintendent Keith Irish and Jason Brockmeyer, director of Innovation, Community Outreach and Special Projects. 

“We have a lot of kids drowning,” Brockmeyer said. “I think so much attention is brought on how do we fish kids out of the river, I think we really need to think about how do we stop kids from falling in.” 

Superintendent Shawnterra Moore said that the district can “predict results” based on student demographics and said there’s a general agreement something needs to change to address this. 

“We have incredible staff here who believe in our children, and yet what we’re doing based on our data is not serving all students, particularly those who are most marginalized,” Moore said. “Whether this decision or future ones, we are going to also have to be bold in our decision making and what we are going to do in order to really serve all students.” 

The board ultimately decided to not adopt the recommended curriculum because of the lack of consideration for the time, and ultimately money, would be required when training teachers on the updated work. Though it recognized the disparities shown in equity across its schools, particularly at its Title I campuses with more disadvantaged students, the board said the lack of consensus on behalf of the teachers who participated in the pilot program presented too much uncertainty. 

“I’d like to see more consensus,” Trustee Patricia Murray said. “When you have half of the teachers that participate in the pilot saying that they don’t want this curriculum, I don’t think it can be, at least at this point, I don’t think that it can be successful.”

Some concerns raised over the recommended curriculum were related to its limited advanced lesson options. Barbara Hanh, a math teacher at Alta Loma Middle School, said that the proposed curriculum would not prepare students to be competitive when applying to college and beyond. 

“If you approve this as our new math curriculum, it will take two years for our kids to be taught what is currently taught in my single algebra I class,” Hanh said.  

Advanced math curriculum has become a highly debated topic in public education across the state, as districts consider when to begin offering algebra courses in preparation for enrollment in calculus by senior year. Taking calculus is highly recommended by the University of California system. 

Hanh was recently told by the district she would no longer be able to teach her summer enrichment math course. Additionally, the middle school advanced pathway options have switched to no longer offer an advanced seventh grade math class, which typically led to enrollment in algebra in eighth grade. Instead, middle schoolers can opt in to take condensed coursework. The district is recommending students who want to tackle an advanced path to take the standard seventh grade math, and then in eighth grade, take a semester of eighth grade math and a semester of algebra.  

Grace Rhee, a math teacher at Alta Loma, said the district’s attempt to increase accessibility ultimately means taking away from students who are ready to be challenged. 

“Why do we have to cater to the students who are not ready yet?” Rhee said. “Yes you are closing the achievement gap, however, you are lowering the bar.” 

Throughout the piloting process, tensions seem to have risen among staff. Trustee Chialin Hsieh raised concern over “the perceived lack of respect for teachers’ feedback in the decision-making process” saying that there is a mistrust in the overall environment. 

Illustrative mathematics curriculum and one other curriculum was piloted at each school in the district. Elementary schools also piloted iReady, middle schools piloted Envision and high school piloted Carnegie. 

Megan Connery, math department chair at El Camino High School and a participant in the math curriculum pilot program, said the variety in options presented as the comparable curriculum to Illustrative Mathematics made it an immediate superior option considering the district’s intent on finding a K-12 aligned curriculum adoption. She said it was difficult to vouch on behalf of Carnegie, which she preferred, because of this. 

“I went into this process in good faith, but we were not given the whole story,” Connery said. “If Ed Services wanted to choose a math curriculum that ‘included the opportunity for vertical K-12 alignment’ then we should have piloted a second K-12 math curriculum so that we would have a proper curriculum pilot.” 

Brockmeyer said he witnessed “concerning behaviors” referenced by Hsieh that suggested frustration from some staff at the piloting meeting but assured that “we’re all on the same team.” 

School board President Daina Lujan said it was important to not rush into a decision on the matter without more confidence from teaching staff in its implementation. 

“If it was just the performance data that was driving the change in curriculum, everyone would buy in,” Lujan said. “I think our staff needs more support with the framework behind what informed this curriculum.”

By not adopting Illustrative Mathematics, the district will consider continuing its piloting process as it still maintains a need to replace its outdated curriculum. In the meantime, Brockmeyer said the education services department will continue supporting teachers in any way they can. 

“Ultimately, the most important factor in student learning is the educator in the classroom,” Brockmeyer said. “So, I think that’s where we need to concentrate our energy and support to make sure that they are supported.”

ana@smdailyjournal.com

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