Math Textbook Selection Debate in Washington State

September 15, 2009

Now that Washington state has adopted new mathematics standards, a familiar question has arisen: What textbooks are most effective in teaching mathematics?

The state's new mandates, introduced last May, mean that, beginning with the class of 2013, students must pass end-of-course mathematics assessments. They must also have earned three high-school mathematics credits, including an Algebra 2 credit.

The new requirements have caused schools districts to take sides in a big-ticket debate after the state recommended a series of books published by Holt Mathematics, which emphasizes explanations, drill, and practice. Some districts indicated a preference for the Discovering Mathematics series, published by Key Curriculum Press, which tries to tie the abstract to the concrete, with mathematics "investigations" and the use of calculators meant to help students discover underlying principles.

Discovering Math supporters include Seattle Public Schools, Highline, Lake Washington, Everett, and Issaquah School Districts. Issaquah Superintendent Steve Rasmussen said, "All of our kids want to go, and we want them to go, to college." Mathematics, he noted, is the "gatekeeping course."

Randy Dorn, Washington's schools chief, speaking about the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) scores, which revealed that half the 10th-grade students failed to pass, said, "Whatever [math] curriculum you have, if everybody believes in it, that's the one that works."

Edie Harding, executive director of the state Board of Education, acknowledged, "We're in an awkward spot right now."

Source: Seattle Times, Aug. 16, 2009.