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Milwaukee Public Schools University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

The Math Alliance Project aims to improve math performance for students in grades 4-8, particularly those with special needs or who struggle with math. It fosters collaboration between general and special education teachers and enhances math instruction and assessment. This project focuses on strengthening content knowledge and promoting differentiated instruction.

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Milwaukee Public Schools University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

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  1. Math Alliance Project Alliance for Teaching Mathematics to Special Education LearnersStrengthening Content Knowledge and Collaboration of General and Special Education Teachers Milwaukee Public Schools University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Dr. DeAnn Huinker, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Math and Science Partnership Meeting Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction November 8, 2011 huinker@uwm.edu

  2. Math Alliance Project Vision • Improve mathematics performance for students in grades 4–8, particularly for students with special needs and for students who struggle in mathematics. • Support a school culture for collaboration of general and special education teachers on improving math learning for all students.

  3. Math Alliance Project Milwaukee Public Schools • Largest Wisconsin School District (ranks 33rd in the US) • 81,000 students • 184 Schools: 118 elementary, 8 middle, 18 mid/high, 40 high • Poverty 77.4% (State 39.3%) • Disabilities 19.5% (State 13.7%) • ELL 10.0% (State 5.7%) • Non-white 85.0% (State 25.6%)

  4. Milwaukee Public Schools, WCKE Mathematics (Nov 2010) Math Gap 31.0 points 25.6% vs 56.6%

  5. Math Alliance Project Participants

  6. Math Alliance Project Goals • Strengthen the math content knowledge of general and special education teachers; • Enhance math instruction and assessment, focusing on appropriate accommodations and modifications for special education and struggling students; • Increase collaboration on math instruction of general and special education teachers.

  7. Math Alliance Project Timeline

  8. Math Alliance Project Project Staff UWM Mathematics Kevin McLeod & Patrick Hopfensperger UWM Special Education Judy Winn & Mary Ann Fitzgerald UWM Mathematics Education DeAnn Huinker District Teachers and Specialists Chris Guthrie, Special Education Teacher Beth Schefelker, Math Teaching Specialist Melissa Hedges, Math Teaching Specialist Mary Spidell, Special Education Supervisor

  9. Math Alliance Project Strands Mathematics Content Year 1: Number, Operations, & Algebraic Reasoning Year 2: Geometry & Measurement Year 3: Data Analysis, Statistics, & Probability Differentiated Instruction Collaboration

  10. Math Alliance Project Content Knowledge Distributive Property and Area Model I have learned how the distributive property moves through math from elementary to middle to high school. I now know the importance of using the area model and being able to use it and the distributive property method in multiplying. I’ve used this in my class and it offers me opportunities to present more strategies to my students. ---General Education Teacher

  11. Math Alliance Project Content Knowledge Alternative Algorithms The biggest impact has been exploring 'how you get there.' I remember doing a lot of memorizing as a student. Going through the process from addition to grouping to multiplication gave me the words to explain more fully those connections. The activities for multiplication, as well as the different methods of getting an answer have really enhanced my teaching. ---Special Education Teachers

  12. Math Alliance Project MKT: Number & Operations --- Special Education Teachers --- General Education Teachers --- Combined Groups Comparison Teachers Mean = 0.05 (n=86)

  13. Math Alliance Project Content Knowledge Area as Covering & Deriving Formulas Meaning of π I can say that when we discussed area as covering I became clearer in my understanding. Before this class when asked what is area, I would rattle off the formula. ---General Education Teacher I hold a deeper level of understanding of how the moving and combining principles can be applied for various shapes when determining areas. ---Special Education Teacher Another “ah ha” moment was when I found out that you can measure to find the circumference and that it would be approximately a little bit more than 3 times the diameter; always wondered why we use pi to figure area of circles. ---General Education Teacher

  14. Math Alliance Project MKT: Geometry & Measurement --- Special Education Teachers --- General Education Teachers --- Combined Groups Comparison Teachers Mean = 0.17 (n=97)

  15. Math Alliance Project Differentiated Instruction One-size Doesn’t Fit All Repertoire of Strategies Before this project, I taught to one-size-fits-all. Now in my practice, I am using the students’ input more as I have them discuss the math to construct knowledge. That knowledge comes in different layers and it is illuminating to see and hear what they are understanding. I also force myself to represent on the board different ways to solve things. Some students get the concepts easier in one format than another. ---General Education Teacher Since beginning this project, I use many, many more hands-on activities in my teaching. I have a larger “bag” of strategies to draw from when I teach. I am much more confident teaching math now. I incorporate more models of representations to teach a particular skill to help enhance understanding for different learners. I now use multiple ways to teach multiplication and division. I use more manipulatives and explain the “why” behind the how. ---3 Special Education Teachers

  16. Math Alliance Project Differentiated Instruction

  17. Math Alliance Project Expectations for Student Learning Discourse Concept Focused My expectations have increased. I now expect my students to explore different ways of solving math problems and I expect them to share their thinking on a regular basis with their classmates. ---Special Education Teacher It’s not all about getting the right answer. Often it’s about the process and how/why. I expect my students to be better able to explain the process they went through and know multiple ways of solving a problem not just memorizing a formula. ---General Education Teacher I think that I now possess higher standards for my students with disabilities than I did in the past as a result of seeing first-hand their ability to demonstrate mastering math on a deeper level. I want to see all students demonstrate true mastery of a skill through a conceptual approach versus simply memorizing and applying formulas that they often do not even understand. ---Special Education Teacher

  18. Math Alliance Project Collaboration So, Special Education teachers are making gains in bringing content knowledge to collaboration, whereas General Education teachers are making gains in bringing more knowledge of the needs of individual students.

  19. Math Alliance Project Survey Item: My students’ math learning has increased because of my collaboration with the general/special education teacher.

  20. Math Alliance Project Challenges • Curriculum development • Literacy dominates special education, Limited guidance in math • Understand philosophical differences “Inquiry & Exploration vs Explicit & Systematic Instruction” • Collaborative planning and teaching • Time, teacher content & pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) • Understanding each other’s roles, potential, and shifts in practice • Range of participants’ content knowledge • Substantial “holes” in math knowledge, lack of PCK (e.g., tools, models) • Being able to put change into practice harder for General Education • Meeting needs of both Special and General Education Teachers in one project (attrition)

  21. Math Alliance Project What are some impacts? Special Education Teachers • Putting moreemphasis on concept-based learning (e.g., visual models, strategies, alternative algorithms, reasoning, problem solving). • Deepening their mathematics content knowledge. • Offering more in collaboration General Education Teachers • Collaborating more with Special Education Teachers. • Putting more differentiated instruction into practice. • Increasing their expectations of the capabilities of students with special needs. • Thinking about when more explicitness is needed

  22. Math Alliance Project Expectations for All Students to “Get It” I really believe that I have high expectations for all of my students now. I think when I encountered a barrier previously it was easy to think that a particular student would just never get it. Now I know that I can find at least one strategy that will reach all students. My students are now more confident themselves. We have grown together. ----Special Education Teacher

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