Changes in High School Math Class Offerings

On Monday, December 7, the STC Board of Education approved a change in the math course offerings beginning with Term 3 of the 2009-2010 school year.  General Math classes will no longer be offered at the high school level.  Students who were enrolled in General Math 1 or General Math 2 will now have the opportunity to take Pre-Algebra.  

Reasons for the Changes:

The goal of the math department is to increase student achievement and allow our students more opportunities to be successful beyond high school.  Through research we found that 40% of the questions on the ITEDs are found in Algebra 1, 30% are from Geometry, and 30% are from Algebra 2.  Algebra 1 is the gateway course for two-year college admission, such as Marshalltown Community College. Careers in business, nursing, manufacturing and computer science require the rigorous mathematics of Algebra. Higher level math classes are a necessity for success on the ACT to qualify for admission at a four year university. The US Department of Education found that low-income students who took Algebra 1 and Geometry were almost three times as likely to attend college as those who did not. (1997)  The Iowa Core Curriculum mandates that each and every student in Iowa will acquire these vital math skills.  In our district, about 85% of the Iowa Core concepts are found in Algebra 1 and Geometry.  We want to ensure that all students at STC have the opportunity to complete these courses and learn these skills.

The math teachers at STC believe that all students can and must learn at relatively high levels of achievement.  We are confident that students can master challenging academic material with our support and help.  The goals of professional development are to help staff implement scientifically proven techniques and strategies such as formative assessment for learning, teaching for understanding, cooperative learning, and other effective teaching practices to increase student achievement.  We will continue to work with parents while seeking new strategies until every student has achieved the intended academic goals.