That’s partly because the ways teachers should teach math are not backed in specific recent science in the same way reading is, according to Aaron Churchill, Ohio research director for the Fordham Institute, an education think tank. There are obvious best practices in how to teach children reading, but the best practices for math are murkier, he said.
The Senate version of the state budget bill requires several things:
- For the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce to approve a list of up to five diagnostic assessments aligned with the academic standards for each of grades kindergarten through three for both reading and math;
- For public schools to report the curriculum they use for math;
- For ODEW to make a list of high-quality curriculum for schools to use for math
- For schools to do more intervention with students who test as “limited” in math;
- And the bill also encourages but doesn’t require high-achieving kids to take courses like calculus in high school.
“One of the things that we really like in this budget is the requirement for the Department of Education and Workforce to put together a list of high-quality instructional materials,” said Lisa Gray, founding president of Ohio Excels, a nonprofit focused on getting Ohio schools high-quality instruction that aligns with workplace needs.
Gray said some districts don’t have the time or resources to research best math practices, so having a list would be useful.
According to ODEW, 32% of the students in grades 3-12 who took state tests in math scored at the limited level (the lowest level possible) in the 2023-2024 school year. Most school districts already offer intervention services for students scoring that low.
“Math is a subject that just builds so much on itself that if you lose that time and you lose part of the curricular sequence, kids just ... lose track of what’s going on,” Churchill said.
A recent study from the National Council on Teacher Quality found Ohio could make significant improvements in teaching math, including requiring elementary school teachers to have a stronger background in math and pass a more stringent math licensure exam.
The study also found some universities’ teaching programs did not adequately teach candidates math. Five programs — Wright State, the University of Dayton, Bowling Green, Capital and Kent State — earned an A+ for teaching math during the program, while Wilmington College and Cleveland State earned an A.
The remaining Ohio colleges’ education programs did not meet enough hours for teaching math or did not teach specific concepts, like geometry, that are critical to math skills later, according to NCTQ.
Gray said she’d like to see changes beyond what was included in the Senate bill, including statewide support and professional development in math, similar to what the state has done in reading. But she said the state is moving in the right direction.
“We really applaud the Senate for moving in this direction,” Gray said. “Other states are starting to do this. I think the governor really kicked off a focus on literacy, and then it’s hard not to think about math.”
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