The Ventura County Mathematics Council is an affiliate of the California Mathematics Council (CMC) and the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM). We serve educators in Ventura County and surrounding areas by conducting meetings, professional development and activities where ideas can be shared and networks formed.
Photo Credit: Felix Cortez
I'm excited to step into the role of president of the Ventura County Math Council this year. I was a classroom teacher in the Oxnard School district for 22 years before taking on the role of Consulting Teacher for the past couple of years. I'm passionate (some would say obsessed!) about math education and am an avid reader of what's new and exciting in the field. There's a lot to be excited about right now. As we embark on this new year of learning and growth, I can't wait to share the journey with all of you!
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Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, the State Board of Education approved the mathematics framework on July 12, 2023!
2. Does this mean the standards are changing?
The Common Core State Standards for Mathematics are not changing. The framework is meant to aid the educational community on how to effectively teach the state standards of mathematics.
3. What is the purpose of the maths framework?
The framework serves as a guide for districts officials, educators, administrators, and publishers on best practices for teaching mathematics. The framework is essentially a tool to help us understand how our students learn best and key strategies to make math accessible for ALL learners.
4. What are some of the new changes in the framework?
The framework emphasizes the importance of teaching big ideas from content connections and drivers of investigation that remain consistent from grades TK-12. It also focuses on the importance of making math accessible for all students. Furthermore, new chapters focus on data science, number sense, and exploring and reasoning with mathematics.
5. Where can I find the adopted framework?
You can read all chapters by clicking the mathematics framework button below. You can hear about the mathematics framework by clicking on the link to the EdSource Podcast.
The Puzzle
Imagine I asked you to put a puzzle together without showing you
a picture of what it should look like completed. You would
probably find connecting pieces here and there but, for the most
part, it would be an extremely challenging task! However, if you
have the entire picture as a guide before you start putting the
puzzle together, you can more efficiently organize the pieces and
begin to predict the next piece you will need. Think of a students’
understanding of math as a puzzle that needs to be put together. It would be much more
efficient for the students to have a relational understanding (all of the parts and how they
relate to each other) of how all the math concepts fit together before they begin new math
learning. The new math framework refers to this as teaching around big ideas.
The Elephant
Mathematics is often taught as a set of disjointed topics
where students learn page by page and chapter by chapter.
Because of this, it is common for students to gain only a
limited understanding of how all of the math concepts fit
together. Imagine students exploring only one part
of an elephant. A student might observe the tail and think the
object as a rope. Another student might observe the trunk and
view it as a snake. If we continue to teach math as
isolated topics, our students will miss the opportunity to see
math in its entirety- the complete picture of the elephant. It is
essential for students to explore mathematics as a whole in
order to build a conceptual understanding of why the standards
are important, how the standards are connected, and how the new learning fits with what they
already know.
Photo Credit: Research Gate
The Solution
Math is fun, beautiful, and limitless! Every student deserves the
opportunity to experience math so they can appreciate its
worth. Therefore, it is absolutely crucial that our instruction
zooms out far beyond route memorization and procedural
skills. Math is so much more than turning to Chapter 2, page
75. We need to make math meaningful by teaching around big ideas!
- How can I this relate this content to my students' lived experiences so it is more culturally relevant and responsive?
- How can I connect this content to a previous area of study?
- How can I present this content in a different way to provide multiple representations of the same idea?
- How can I engage my students with this math content to create an active learning environment?
Figure 1.4 Drivers of Investigation, Standards for Mathematical Practices, and Content Connections from the revised draft of the Mathematics Framework, Chapter 1 page 21:
