What's being done to address low math proficiency in NYC public schools? Experts say the problem "cannot wait any longer"
NEW YORK -- Low math proficiency among New York City public school students is prompting a teacher-led organization to bring their concerns to the Department of Education.
According to last year's scores, only 18% of city fourth graders were proficient in math, with even lower rates among Black and Hispanic students.
Educators raise concerns about low math scores in NYC schools
Tuesday, the organization Educators for Excellence released recommendations for creating and improving quality math instruction. First, by acknowledging the problem was worsened by the pandemic and has yet to recover.
"We cannot wait any longer," said Marielys Divanne, executive director of Educators for Excellence - New York.
The report suggests things like a clear set of curriculum options, more resources for teachers, more outreach for communities in need, and building relationships with parents to keep them in the know. If that sounds similar to how "The Science of Reading" came about, that's the point.
"It is a moment to address the whole child ... And that means we cannot prioritize literacy and only literacy," Divanne said.
"Until they can see that there is a correlation -- you cannot do math if you cannot read -- and within the confines of reading, under the umbrella ... comes all other content areas," said Valerie Green Thomas, a math teacher at a city middle school.
An opinion seemingly echoed by city Schools Chancellor David Banks.
"We are absolutely going to come back to the earliest ages and ensure that what we're doing for reading, we're doing for math," he said.
How parents can help students with math
No matter the curriculum, math presents different challenges than reading. Parents, for example, may be more comfortable reading a book with their kids than doing long division. Advocates say that a lack of consistency in terms of curriculum is partially to blame for that.
"They're afraid of it because they're like, oh, I don't know how to do it that way, I know how to do it this way," said Ashara Baker, New York State Director of the National Parents Union. "Putting that power within the educator's hands could be an effective tool to lean in and show parents, this is how we're doing things in class, these are the materials, this is how it can align with out-of-school time."
Each person CBS New York's Doug Williams spoke to went out of their way to credit Banks and city schools for already doing the hard work on reading. Now, they hope, the DOE will take their advice on this, as well.