posted August 21, 2007
The Carnegie Corporation has awarded a $975,000 grant to improve the teaching of mathematics in 16 local high schools. Chattanooga’s Public Education Foundation (PEF) is the grant recipient along with the Department of Education.
The math initiative builds upon earlier work funded by Carnegie Corporation and PEF which has led to more students passing and scoring “advanced” on the Gateway English exam, more students graduating from high school, and more students going on to college. The models established with the first grant will allow the new mathematics initiative to move into place and become effective very quickly.
School superintendent Dr. Jim Scales applauded the grant as another indicator of Hamilton County Schools’ progress, and welcomed the opportunity to improve high school math skills. “Improving student achievement in math is clearly stated in the first strategy in our strategic plan. We are committed to moving our students forward in achievement in math and science, and this grant will help us get there,” said Dr. Scales.
Michele Cahill, vice president of Carnegie Corporation, said ”Hamilton County has raised expectations for its high school students, strengthened its curriculum and made significant progress in high school reform. Today mathematics is the gateway course to success in college and in many vocational and technical careers. Carnegie is delighted to provide support for Hamilton County’s plan to improve the teaching of mathematics in all of its high schools. We look forward to both local success in Hamilton County and to lessons that can be shared across the country.”
The grant will support initiatives in all Hamilton County high schools, including the selection of expert math teachers at each school who will be given time during their day to coach other math teachers on effective methods for engaging their students. It will also establish a summer institute that will bring together district math teachers and professors from UTC and Chattanooga State. The grant will also support the development and revision of several math courses and provide resources that will help school staff analyze test data more closely.
The math coach at each high school will split time between teaching and coaching other teachers in how to deliver quality math instruction to students. Special emphasis will be placed on 9th grade Algebra I, a vitally important assignment that requires experienced instructors, officials said.
Christy Evans, HCDE’s Director of Secondary Mathematics, and Jill Reese, Math Coach Coordinator, will coordinate, support and manage the work of the math coaches. ”We have all seen the results in literacy from Carnegie’s generous support over the past five years, and we are looking forward to applying those lessons to the teaching and learning of math. As both teachers and trainers, the math coaches will really be able to elevate the performance of both teachers and students,” said Ms. Evans.
The grant will fund the creation of a math institute to take place in the summer of 2008. The institute will include math professors who teach first year students at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and Chattanooga State Community College, both important voices in the call to reform high school math instruction. The institute will also include interns in the university’s math teacher prep program, equipping them with some of the same strategies being learned by their experienced colleagues.
Intensive math curriculum development will be included in the grant. In the summer of 2008, teachers will collaborate on the creation of a global geometry course for all 9th graders as well as four academy-specific Algebra II courses. The general intent is to connect high school math courses to real-world applications and experiences.
Last, the grant will help create a district “numeracy framework,” based on math test data that shows what’s working in the classroom and which schools and teachers are doing a particularly good job in producing results. From the data, math leaders and principals will document best practices and develop ways for teachers to study them and incorporate them into their classrooms. This in turn will propel math instruction across the district.
“We’ve made terrific progress in our high schools. This grant will help us produce significant innovations in math instruction and help high schools implement programs they would not be able to otherwise,” said Dan Challener, president of Public Education Foundation.
Bill Kennedy, Director of the Schools for a New Society grant programs at PEF, emphasizes the sustainability of the initiative. “Because this is about teachers teaching teachers, and because it develops new courses and curriculum, what is learned in this next year will boost math instruction for years to come,” said Mr. Kennedy.
Carnegie Corporation of New York was created by Andrew Carnegie in 1911 to promote "the advancement and diffusion of knowledge and understanding." For more than 95 years the Corporation has carried out Carnegie's vision of philanthropy by building on his two major concerns: international peace and advancing education and knowledge. As a grantmaking foundation, the Corporation will invest more than $85 million this year in nonprofits to fulfill Mr. Carnegie's mission, "to do real and permanent good in this world."
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