Although there may still be future problems to solve, educational leaders considered variables that have made Michigan measure up in math education on Monday.
More than 150 professors, teachers and researchers from across the state attended The Complete Equation: The Michigan Mathematics Success Story, a convocation held at the Kellogg Center to celebrate a decade of K-12 math education improvement.
Participants reflected on recent math reports including the Third International Mathematics and Science Study-Repeat, or TIMSS-R - a study allowing states and school districts to see how their math and science programs rank globally.
Michigan eighth-graders performed best among the 13 states th make the nation more competitive internationally.
“(The event) was an opportunity to work with a planning committee and the state Department of Education to reflect on the results of the TIMSS-R study,” said MSU Provost Lou Anna Simon, one of the featured speakers.
“But it was also to go below the data to chart the next strategies so that we can continue to improve the level of math achievement for all children of Michigan.”
William Schmidt, director of MSU’s TIMSS National Research Center, said U.S. students ranked only among the middle of the 32 countries that participated in the study.
“There are no world-class performances, at least among the states,” said Schmidt, also a professor of counseling, educational psychology and special education. “I think, though, there is a hope and Michigan leads that hope.”
Gov. John Engler, who spoke at the event, praised Michigan math teachers and students for their achievements, but urged them to continue to make the United States more competitive internationally.
“In other countries, they typically move on to algebra and geometry at an earlier age and now we really need to start introducing some of these tougher subjects at lower grade levels,” said Susan Shafer, acting press secretary for Engler.
Glenda Lappan, a professor of mathematics and teacher education at MSU and former president of the Michigan Council of Teachers of Mathematics, said Michigan has worked for the past 50 years to improve critical areas in education.
“Curriculum alone will never get us there, but we have brought together professional development with the curriculum arm and the assessment arm,” she said.
Charles Allan, mathematics education consultant for the Michigan Department of Education, said the combined efforts from public schools and universities will help push math achievement.
“There has been dedicated leadership at all the major universities, and that’s not something you find in other states,” he said.
