Routledge Mathematics Education at Highly Effective Schools That Serve the Poor: Strategies for Change

This book presents research findings about school-level and district-level practices and successful strategies employed in mathematics education by highly effective schools that serve high-poverty communities. It includes both the theory and practice of creating highly effective schools in these communities.   In 2002 nine schools were selected in a national competition to participate in the Hewlett-Packard High Achieving Grant Initiative. As part of this Initiative, these schools participated in the research study this book reports. The study employed both qualitative and quantitative methodologies to examine school- and classroom-level factors that contributed to high achievement, particularly in mathematics. The goals of the study were twofold: 1) to investigate the salient characteristics of the highly effective schools in which the research was conducted, and 2) to explore participating teachers’ conceptions and practices about mathematics curriculum, instruction, and assessment.   The schools described have much to teach about creating powerful learning environments that empower all students to learn challenging mathematics. Given the pressures of the accountability measures of the No Child Left Behind legislation, this book is extremely timely for those seeking school models that serve high-poverty communities and have demonstrated high performance on high-stakes examinations and other assessments.   Mathematics Education at Highly Effective Schools That Serve the Poor: Strategies for Change is particularly relevant for teacher educators, researchers, teachers, and graduate students in the fields of mathematics education and school policy and reform, and for school administrators and district coordinators of mathematics education. Review "...contributes significantly to the field of mathematics education because there are few if any texts that emphasize high quality or highly effective schools and teaching strategies to help poor children."―Jacqueline Leonard, Temple University "This book is significant given the continued low mathematics performance of students from high poverty backgrounds and the increased pressure to 'leave no child behind.' It provides a sort of 'existence proof' that students from poverty backgrounds can be successful in mathematics and strive to college attendance. The lessons learned from these highly effective schools could be of help to policymakers and teachers alike."―Francine Cabral Roy, University of Rhode Island "The findings in this book are imporant, and not only for schools that serve the poor...To the degree that this book provides motivation and a vision, it does a real service."--Teachers College Record, March 05, 2007 About the Author Richard Kitchen is an associate professor at The University of New Mexico in the Departments of Educational Specialties and Mathematics & Statistics. His primary research interests are in mathematics education in the areas of teacher education, equity, and assessment. He is currently a co-Principal Investigator at UNM of the Center for the Mathematics Education of Latinos/as, which is funded through the National Science Foundation. CEMELA is an interdisciplinary, multi-university consortium focused on research and practice on the connections between the teaching and learning of mathematics and the cultural, social, and linguistic contexts of Latino/a students. Julie M. DePree has a Ph.D. in education with an emphasis in mathematics education. She has taught at the elementary school level through college level in very diverse regions of New Mexico. She is currently a Professor of Mathematics at the University of New Mexico-Valencia Branch, and teaches statistics, various levels of algebra, and mathematics for teachers courses at UNM-Valencia. She also collaborates with faculty at UNM main campus on research projects and teach mathematics methods courses in the Department of Education. She was the co-director for the