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Poster Session 4, 2:15 PM - 3:00 PM: Campus Center Auditorium [A10]

Presenter: Angel Daniel Cruz

Faculty Sponsor: Adena Calden

School: UMass Amherst

Research Area: Education & Educational Research

ABSTRACT

Massachusetts is known to be one of the most educated states and rank among the best school systems in the U.S. Mathematics classes are an integral part of this education as mathematics to some degree is used in everyone's everyday life. Outside of work in engineering, economics, and physics, mathematics is used in cooking, personal finances, and home remodeling. Topics taught in mathematics today have been validated by the development of curricula and standards by several mathematics groups such as the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and the Mathematical Association of America. Massachusetts school districts have autonomy over the curricula taught in their schools. The diversity in curricula selection and changes in mathematical needs over time call for a review of modern mathematical curriculums. This study hopes to find the best available high school mathematics curricula by comparing curricula effectiveness through an analysis of mathematics MCAS and SAT scores. After assessing exam performance by curricula school level variables such as school demographics, attendance and funding will be controlled. A qualitative analysis on top performing curricula content to determine the most important parts of an effective mathematics curriculum.