Focus on Mathematics

As we look to the future of an education that is pertinent to the complex, technologically sophisticated society in which we live, one word comes to mind— Mathematics . Mathematics is the foundation of science and technology and these subjects dominate the world and will for years to come. If we, as a country, want to remain economically powerful and internationally competitive, we will need to rely on citizens who are scientifically literate.

•  Mathematics teaches critical thinking skills which are used to manage and process information and assess it for accuracy. Mathematics is not just memorizing and using algorithms but conceptualizing, understanding and using thinking processes. Thinking transcends all subjects of study.

•  Mathematics provides a universal language for communicating with people of other cultures and countries. Our current economy depends on our global relationships.

•  Mathematics achievement is an indicator of the workforce potential of the area. This indicator is especially important to “high tech” businesses scouting for a location. Cities and counties seeking business growth need motivating factors such as opportunities for families and evidence of a quality local population who will become potential workers for the business.

•  Mathematics underlies the governing theories of science and provides direction for exploration. Ideas in medicine, for example, will dramatically affect our quality of life. As a society we need to make these discoveries and as individuals we need to evaluate the suitability of them to our particular circumstances.

As we look to the future of education we see different topics in the K-12 curriculum. The traditional adding, subtracting, will be combined with things like topology, dynamic systems, modeling—ideas needing the dreaded algebra . Higher mathematics achievement will be expected of our students, achievement that reflects procedural fluency and also conceptual understanding. We see more effective strategies for diverse student populations being utilized by content strong teachers where they integrate hands-on learning, critical thinking and frequent assessment into their lessons and they make mathematics relevant, purposeful and interesting to the learner. If any progress in bringing ALL our students to a higher level of academic achievement is to be made, there must be focus on the quality of teaching. We must address the ways in which we prepare teachers for the classroom of the future and keep current quality teachers in the classroom.

The task of meeting the educational needs of All students is enormous and it will require the resources, the ideas and the work of many who have a stake in the success of the system. Therefore, establishing innovative and effective partnerships becomes a necessity. Institutional partnerships need to form between school districts, university/colleges and business to share resources, avoid duplication of effort and to align the curricula with standards that are contemporary. Personal partnerships must solidify relationships between parents, students and teachers so that all three entities share in the responsibility of learning.

For people to participate fully in society they must know mathematics or they will be cut off from a whole realm of human endeavors including competence in everyday tasks. As a world power, it behooves us to have citizens who are scientifically literate. It is the responsibility of our educational structure to insure that this happens.