My kids can : making math accessible to all learners, K–5

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Introduction

NCTM Standards-based instruction might be fine for most students, but students

who are struggling with mathematics must to be told what to do.

When my colleague, Cornelia Tierney, and I were working on Bridges to Classroom
Mathematics, a NSF funded professional development project focused on the
implementation of NCTM Standards-based curricula, we heard statements like
the one above from administrators across the country. We, however, strongly
believe that all children can learn to make sense of mathematics and deserve the
opportunity to do so. With funding from the National Science Foundation, we
developed the Accessible Mathematics project. This project brought together
special educators and classroom teachers to develop principles and strategies to
improve the mathematical learning of students who struggle with mathematics.
Our work was based on the premise that if these students engage in a variety of
NCTM Standards-based activities that support their strengths,they can learn to
think mathematically. The operating assumptions of the project were adapted
from the work of James Hiebert and his colleagues (1997):

• Each student can and has the right to learn mathematics with understanding.


• As the teacher comes to know each child, he/she can select tasks that
  enable the student to engage in mathematics tasks that pose authentic
  problems.


• Active student participation in the mathematical community of the class-
  room increases learning opportunities for all students.


• In a mathematical community, acknowledging and accepting differences in
  how students learn helps students work together and feel safe to take risks.

Classroom teachers today are expected to have more responsibility for teaching
the range of learners than in the past. In regard to students who struggle, there are
two major developments that have led to the increased focus on the classroom
teacher.