“Serving Our Strongest Students”

CAIS Math Day 2008

Please type your answers below and e-mail your completed form as an attachment to CAIS organizer Chris Davies at by TUESDAY, MARCH 19, 2008.

Please try to be as expansive as possible. The more we share, the more we will take from this day!

(Teachers from the same school should feel free to collaborate on a single questionnaire.)

We hope to share all the completed questionnaires as soon as possible. Depending on how much data we receive, we might post answers online, burn answers to a CD, and/or transfer via flashdrive. Please bring a flashdrive (portable memory stick) to Math Day if possible.

1) Please tell the group about YOURSELF.
Name: Henri Picciotto, Scott Nelson, Margot Schou
School: Urban School of San Francisco
Town: San Francisco
Enrollment: 350
Grades you teach: 9-12
Courses you teach: this year
HP: Alg 1, Geom, Precalc, Infinity (elective), Calc
SN: Alg 1, Geom, Analytic Geometry (elective), Stat
MS: Geom, Alg 2, Precalc
2) Does your school have TRACKING? (or courses offered at “honors” level, or some sort of structured differentiation in the courses?) Explain: No – we don’t have different versions of any given course. But we do have more accessible vs. more challenging electives (see below.)
If you offer advanced classes, briefly describe how they differ from the regular classes?
With Algebra 2 as a prerequisite (all of these are one-trimester classes):
More accessible:
Mathematical Modeling and Probability/Statistics (aka MMaPS)
Computer Programming
More challenging:
Analytic Geometry
Space
Infinity
In between:
Functions
With Functions as a prerequisite:
Calculus (two trimesters)
With Calculus as a prerequisite:
Calculus AB (five weeks only, AP prep)
Calculus BC (five weeks only, AP prep + BC-specific material)
If you offer advanced classes, do you think they benefit the strongest students? Yes, definitely – even the “more accessible” classes have material that is interesting to the strongest students, and all the more so the more challenging classes. What about the rest of the students? Less so, but MMaPS especially works well for the weakest, and all but Infinity and Calculus benefit the middle kids.
3) What types of CONTENT ENRICHMENT do you provide for the strongest students? Mention additional problems, projects, extra credit assignments, websites, software, etc. by course (please include as many specifics as you can): We weave enrichment into the fabric of the course, so it is not reserved for just a few kids.
Sixth Grade Math: NA
PreAlgebra: NA
Algebra: function diagrams, Fathom software, TI-89 calculator
Geometry: geometric puzzles (pentominoes, supertangrams), turtle geometry computer programming, Cabri software
Algebra 2: iterating linear functions, very in-depth unit on quadratic stuff, geometric intro to complex numbers
Precalculus:
Calculus:
Statistics:
Other math courses: Pretty much the entire curriculum for Space and Infinity qualifies as enrichment.
For more info on much of this, see <http://www.picciotto.org/math-ed
4) To what extent are CHALLENGE PROBLEMS (non-routine, math-contest, synthesis type problems that students have not been shown explicitly how to solve) part of the standard curriculum (as opposed to extra credit)? Only to a limited extent. Largely in the form of tough problem sets, which count as tests, but do allow some cooperation and outside help.
Are students graded on their ability to solve such problems, and if so, how is that done? On tests, such problems are worth very few points. On problem sets, they count, but since some cooperation is allowed, it reduces the sting for the weaker students.
5) How do you modify your ASSESSMENT for strong students? Do you grade the strongest students differently or have different standards? No.
Do you let strong students skip routine assignments in order to work on advanced assignments? Not usually.
Do your strongest students have difficulty communicating their thinking in oral and/or written form (they can just DO the math in their head)?
Yes, that is often the case, which of course means they are not as strong as you would think just by looking at quizzes and tests.
How do you help them to improve? We require a fair amount of explaining, especially on test corrections, problem sets, and reports.
Do you deduct points if answers are correct but the reasoning is not sufficiently communicated?
Yes, but the extent and frequency probably varies from teacher to teacher.
6) What other types of PEDAGOGICAL ADJUSTMENTS do you make to serve strong students (Use of class time, differentiated learning, amount of collaborative learning, modified teaching styles, etc.)
·  Constant forward motion – we don’t wait for the whole class to “get” something before moving forward.
·  We have long periods, (70 minutes, and once a week 70+60). Ideally we do new material every day.
·  When we review old material, which we do a lot to balance out the above two points, we try to do it in an unfamiliar format, a different representation, or using another tool-- as opposed to redoing more of the material in the same way, which is boring to stronger students.)
·  In fact, multiple representation and multiple tools is a huge priority of our curriculum – something that is worthwhile for both stronger and weaker students, as it increases both access and challenge.
7) Does your school allow 9th-12th graders to ACCELERATE in to math courses above their grade level? Yes, but only to a very limited extent. Very few students do Algebra 2 as 9th graders or Calculus as 11th graders.
Does your school schedule make this acceleration difficult? It’s hard to know, because we do it so little.
Does your school allow 5th-8th graders to accelerate above age level? How do you weigh the maturity/social issues? NA
How is this acceleration accomplished?
Do you receive much parental pressure to allow students to accelerate beyond their age cohort? Much pressure from a few parents, yes. A few parents/students are frustrated by our resistance to acceleration.
8) Do you have any SUMMER math offerings on your campus that serve to enrich strong students?
No.
Do you give credit to students who take acceleration/enrichment courses from outside programs?
Sometimes, yes.
9) What math COURSES does your school offer for students who have completed Precalculus?
See above.
Are there students who run out of math courses to take? What do they do?
No.
10) Does your school have a MATH TEAM?
No.
How much participation is there (in absolute and/or percentage terms)? 0
How often are math competitions held on campus? Less than once a year.
How often does the team travel to compete? Much less than once a year.
Do you offer any incentives/extra credit for participating in math team events? No. People do that?
What other things do you do to get your strongest students to participate? Nothing.
Are your present day mathletes as strong as they were in the past? NA
11) Do you have a PEER TUTORING program where your strong students can work as math tutors? Describe: Yes. This is administered by the 9th/10th grade dean, and also involves the school’s learning specialist. I don’t know that much about it.
12) Do you track (or can you guess) what percent or numbers of your GRADUATES go on to major in mathematical fields? In science? Not really sure. Definitely some, but I have no sense of numbers.
Do you know if any of your strongest math graduates went on to teach math? A very few that we know of.
13) What other SUGGESTIONS do you have for serving our strongest students?
The attached files from our Math Dept Handbook may suggest ideas.