PRINCE FREDERICK, Md. — On the heels of receiving MCAP score results last month, the Maryland State Board of Education is adopting a new mathematics policy to “strengthen student achievement, equity, and career readiness.” The new policy is for students from pre-K to 12th grade.
Joe Sutton, supervisor of secondary mathematics, and Julie Morrison, supervisor of elementary mathematics, presented the new policy at the Sept. 25 Board of Education (BOE) meeting. Sutton said the new policies align with the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future and reflect feedback from educators, families and stakeholders.
“The policy is designed to ensure that all students across the state have access to high-quality mathematics instruction that prepares them for college and careers,” Morrison said, adding that the state Department of Education has identified opportunity and achievement gaps in math, along with uneven access to advanced coursework and inconsistencies in instructional time and practices as major hurdles.
The goals of the new mathematics policy are:
- Remove barriers such as exclusionary tracking to ensure all students can participate in advanced mathematics opportunities.
- Strengthen foundational skills in number sense, algebraic reasoning, geometry, and data/statistics as students progress through school.
- Ensure all students are mathematically college- and career-ready by the end of 10th grade.
- Provide both on-grade-level instruction and responsive acceleration opportunities.
- Promote effective teaching practices through professional learning while implementing common assessments and ongoing progress monitoring.
Sutton and Morrison outlined the most significant shifts that will take place between now and the end of the 2028-2029 school year, at which time students will take an integrated Algebra II and College and Career Readiness Assessment.
Two of the biggest changes are removing tracking processes to make sure more students have access to advanced math opportunities rather than just honors track students, and ensuring 60 minutes of daily math instruction at the middle school level. Sutton said accelerated math options will still be available and they’re exploring options to help students pursue math based on their desired career path and specific needs, rather than performance in other courses.
Morrison said she believed the pre-K–5 curriculum would already pass the new standards.
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