This resource was developed by CSMC faculty and doctoral students with support from the National Science Foundation under Grant No. ESI-0333879. The opinions and information provided do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science

1
This resource was developed by CSMC faculty and
doctoral students with support from the National
Science Foundation under Grant No. ESI-0333879.
The opinions and information provided do not
necessarily reflect the views of the National
Science Foundation. 3-20-05
2

Committees and Reports that Have Influenced the
Changing Mathematics Curriculum
This set of PowerPoint slides is one of a series
of resources produced by the Center for the Study
of Mathematics Curriculum. These materials are
provided to facilitate greater understanding of
mathematics curriculum change and permission is
granted for their educational use.
An Agenda for Action Recommendations for School
Mathematics of the 1980s
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics
(NCTM) 1980
http//www.mathcurriculumcenter.org
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An Agenda for ActionRecommendations for School
Mathematics of the 1980s
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics 1980
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Forces at Work
Pendulum of popular psychology was in full
swing. 1960s were characterized by discovery
learning and humanistic psychology. 1970s were
characterized by behavioral psychology closely
tied to a back to basics movement. There was
a need for national direction for mathematics
education. National Assessments of Educational
Progress (NAEP) tests in 1973 and 1978 showed a
decrease in mathematical achievement for both 13-
and 17-year-old students. Priorities in School
Mathematics (PRISM) survey revealed shifts in
preferences and curriculum priorities in the
mathematics education community.
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Prominent Issues
The role of emerging technology, particularly
handheld calculators, in school
mathematics The role of problem solving in
school mathematics The future of the metric
system Self-paced mathematics instruction
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NCTM Board of Directors

• Shirley Hill, President
• Max Sobel, President-elect
• Board Members
• Sarah Burkhart James Rubillo
• LeRoy Dalton Jesse Rudnick
• Edgar Edwards William Stannard
• Gail Lowe Catherine Tobin
• Jane Martin James Wilson
• Douglas Potvin June Yamashita

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An Agenda for Action Was Informed by the Work of
Three Groups

• Mathematics Curriculum for the 1980s Committee
• George Immerzeel, F. Joe Crosswhite, LeRoy
  Dalton, Catherine Tobin, and James W. Wilson
• Task Force on Recommendations
• Harold Trimble, Jane Gawronski, James Gray,
  Patricia Koch, Donald Krieder, and Gwendolyn
  Shufelt
• Priorities in School Mathematics Project
  (PRISM)
• Alan Osborne, Jon Higgins, Peggy Kasten, and
  Marilyn Suydam

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Recommendations

• 1. Problem solving must be the focus of school
  mathematics in the 1980s.
• 2. The concept of basic skills in mathematics
  must encompass more than computational facility.
• 3. Mathematics programs must take full advantage
  of the power of calculators and computers at all
  grade levels.
• 4. Stringent standards of both effectiveness and
  efficiency must be applied to the teaching of
  mathematics.

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Recommendations

• 5. The success of mathematics programs and
  student learning must be evaluated by a wider
  range of measures than conventional testing.
• 6. More mathematics study must be required for
  all students and a flexible curriculum with a
  greater range of options should be designed to
  accommodate the diverse needs of the student
  population.
• 7. Mathematics teachers must demand of themselves
  and their colleagues a high level of
  professionalism.
• 8. Public support for mathematics instruction
  must be raised to a level commensurate with the
  importance of mathematical understanding to
  individuals and society.

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Four of the Recommendations Focused on Curriculum

• 1. Problem solving must be the focus of school
  mathematics in the 1980s.
• 2. The concept of basic skills in mathematics
  must encompass more than computational facility.
• 3. Mathematics programs must take full advantage
  of the power of calculators and computers at all
  grade levels.
• 6. More mathematics study must be required for
  all students and a flexible curriculum with a
  greater range of options should be designed to
  accommodate the diverse needs of the student
  population.

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Problem Solving as a Focus ofSchool Mathematics

• Curriculum Implications
• The mathematics curriculum should be organized
  around problem solving.
• The definition and language of problem solving
  in mathematics should be developed and expanded
  to include a broad range of strategies,
  processes, and modes of presentation that
  encompass the full potential of mathematical
  applications.
• Appropriate curricular materials to teach
  problem solving should be developed for all grade
  levels.

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• Mathematics programs of the 1980s should
  involve students in problem solving by presenting
  applications at all grade levels.
• Researchers and funding agencies should give
  priority to investigations into the nature of
  problem solving and to effective ways to develop
  problem solvers, including the development of
  good prototype material using all media.

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Expanded View of Basic Skills in Mathematics

• Curriculum Implications
• The full scope of what is basic should contain
  at least the 10 basic skill areas identified by
  the National Council of Supervisors of
  Mathematics problem solving applying
  mathematics in everyday situations alertness to
  the reasonableness of results estimation and
  approximation appropriate computational skills
  geometry measurement reading, interpreting, and
  constructing tables, charts, and graphs using
  mathematics to predict and computer literacy.

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• The identification of basic skills in
  mathematics is a dynamic process and should be
  continually updated to reflect new and changing
  needs.
• Changes in the priorities and emphases in the
  instructional program should be made in order to
  reflect the expanded concept of basic skills.
• Teachers should incorporate estimation
  activities into all areas of the program on a
  regular and sustaining basis, in particular
  encouraging the use of estimating skills to pose
  and select alternatives and to assess what a
  reasonable answer may be.

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• Teachers should provide ample opportunities
  for students to learn communication skills in
  mathematics. They should systematically guide
  students to read mathematics and to talk about it
  with clarity.
• The higher-order mental processes of logical
  reasoning, information processing, and decision
  making should be considered basic to the
  application of mathematics. Mathematics curricula
  and teachers should set as objectives the
  development of logical processes, concepts, and
  language

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Use of Calculators and Computers at All Grade
Levels

• Curriculum Implications
• All students should have access to calculators
  and increasingly to computers throughout their
  school mathematics program.
• The use of electronic tools such as
  calculators and computers should be integrated
  into the core mathematics curriculum.

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• Curriculum materials that integrate and
  require the use of the calculator and computer
  in diverse and imaginative ways should be
  developed and made available.
• A computer literacy course, familiarizing the
  student with the role and impact of the computer,
  should be a part of the general education of
  every student.
• Secondary school computer courses should be
  designed to provide the necessary background for
  advanced work in computer science.

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More Mathematics and a Flexible Curriculumto
Accommodate the Diverse Needs of All Students

• Curriculum Implications
• In secondary school, the curriculum should
  become more flexible, permitting a greater number
  of options for a diversified student population.
• Mathematics educators and college
  mathematicians should reevaluate the role of
  calculus in the differentiated mathematics
  programs.

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• The curriculum that stresses problem solving
  must pay special heed to the developmental
  sequence best suited to achieving process goals,
  not just content goals.
• Special programs stressing problem-solving
  skills should be devised for special categories
  of students.

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Significance and Impact

• NCTM took on a stronger role as an advocate on
  issues in mathematics education and that role
  continued.
• Publishers devoted more attention to problem
  solving in their textbooks and in other
  instructional materials.
• Increased interest among teachers and
  curriculum developers in the use of technology,
  particularly handheld calculators.
• Stimulated increased attention to professional
  development and teacher quality.
• Created momentum that set the stage for the
  development of the NCTM 1989 Standards.
• Funding agencies supported more research
  related to problem solving.

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References

• Hill, S. H. (1981). The Agenda for Action as a
  potential agent for change in the mathematics
  curriculum. Changing school mathematics A
  responsive process. Reston, VA NCTM.
• Hill, S. H. (1983). An Agenda for Action status
  and impact. The Agenda in Action (1983 Yearbook).
  Reston, VA NCTM.
• National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
  (1980). An Agenda for Action Recommendations for
  school
• mathematics of the 1980s. Reston, VA Author.
• Sobel, M. (1981). Implementing the Agenda for
  Action. Changing school mathematics A
  responsive process. Reston, VA NCTM.