Key stakeholders met to discuss curriculum-related work needed in response to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) produced under the leadership of the National Governor's Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers. The goals of the meeting were to:

(1) Provide guidance on future mathematics materials development efforts, K-12; and

(2) Address issues of curriculum design and production that arise in an environment of Common Core Standards.

A Report of the meeting will be produced summarizing discussions and recommendations.

Background:

The National Governor's Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers have published K-8 grade-by-grade and high school learning goals/standards for literacy and mathematics for all students. Forty-eight states have collaborated in the development process and over 30 states have committed to adopting them in place of their current standards. The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) initiative is likely to lead to common assessments measuring students' progress toward the standards.

Very quickly, state school systems will be adopting curriculum guidelines in mathematics, prescribing what should be taught and tested at each grade K-8 and high school. When such curricula have been adopted, schools will need to look for resources (print and digital materials, instructional software, lesson plans, etc.) to support 'delivery' of their new curricula. In the short run, the resources they have to draw from are the innovative materials that have been produced by NSF-funded projects, existing traditional commercial materials, and the loosely structured bank of lesson materials and software that reside in various places on the internet.

This presents an opportunity for critical stakeholders to get ahead of the curve and focus attention on how to implement these standards in ways that lead to improved learning. This could start with a meeting of key stakeholders (curriculum and assessment developers, instructional material publishers, state agency curriculum specialists, school district leaders and representatives of NCTM, NCSM, ASSM) to discuss implications of the CCS for curriculum development efforts.

Goal of Meeting:

Discuss issues and recommend actions regarding curriculum design and production that arise in an environment of Common Core Standards (CCS). For example:

• What are the most important implications of the new national curriculum guidelines for change in traditional scope and sequence of school mathematics?
• What is the intended spirit of the national guidelines, behind and beyond the letter of the standards?
• How well will existing traditional and innovative curriculum resources support curricula that meet the new Federal guidelines?
• What curriculum development and research activity is most important in supporting longer-term successful implementation of the new Federal mathematics curriculum?
• What innovative curriculum development and research should be undertaken to prepare for informed revision of the national standards in the future, as mathematics education adapts to the what is certain to be rapidly changing conditions and expectations for STEM education and education in general?

Date/Location of Meeting: August 1-3, 2010
Arlington, Virginia

Planning Committee
Chris Hirsch (Chair), Sol Garfunkel, June Mark, Barbara Reys, Eric Robinson

Participants: see link

Agenda: see link

Outcome of Meeting:

One concrete outcome of the meeting will be a white paper summarizing ideas and themes discussed at the meeting. The paper will frame key issues and implications for curriculum development, selection, and implementation in both the short and long-term. These issues will likely include the importance of curriculum and instructional materials in the implementation of the Common Core Standards, the need to provide state and district curriculum leaders with guidance in translating the CCS to state and local curriculum guidelines, and the need for teacher professional development to support understanding of the goals and practices described in the CCS. As appropriate, recommendations will be offered to inform curriculum development and research as well as the broader mathematics education community.

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