Tasks matter!

Mathematical tasks have been the topic of conversation during the opening district-wide collaboration opportunities this month. We defined mathematical tasks, reviewed upcoming assessment expectations for performance tasks, and began to create rich tasks that will engage all learners.  Below is a summary of the work of the teams during the month of September.



Definition of Task 

• A mathematical task is a problem or set of problems that focuses students’ attention on a particular mathematical idea (content standards) and/or provides an opportunity to develop or use a particular mathematical habit of mind (standard for mathematical practice).
• Tasks can be used for instruction or assessment.

Algebra Team 
The District-wide Algebra collaborative team met on September 11th and explored the newly released PARCC prototype items. Teams began reviewing their upcoming units of instruction and are planing Type II and Type III tasks for each unit.  You can find drafts of these tasks on SharePoint.

Geometry Team 
The District-wide Geometry collaborative team met on September 4th.  This is Year 1 of implementation and teacher teams are busy creating rich learning opportunities aligned to the new curriculum.  Teams are in the midst of proofs and constructions and we completed a looking at student work protocol for the first unit of instruction to identify student misconceptions and plan for next steps.  This team also explored the newly released PARCC prototypes and began reviewing upcoming units to include this level of complexity in student thinking.  

AQT/GQT Teams 
The middle school Algebra and Geometry collaborative team met on September 10th.  We have 50+ elementary and middle school sites offering high school mathematics courses to 2000+ students.  This team reviewed their data from last year and also focused their work on rich mathematical tasks.  Teams worked on analyzing tasks about what made them "Great Tasks" .  

Intervention Team
The District-wide intervention team convened on September 19th and addressed how we create access to these math tasks.  We analyzed our current  Tier 1 and Tier 2 strategies for our intervention courses and Sheryl Filliater, our Lab Intervention coach, modeled specific strategies to engage reluctant learners.  Teams created SMART goals and action steps to ensure that the intervention courses are aligned to the purpose of the course.

Up next, teams will work on strategies to teach students to "Read Like a Mathematician!"

How do you assess Mathematical Practices?

This years Math curriculum day was a huge success. Over 140 math teachers convened to get a head start on the 2013-2014 school year.  This past summer, curriculum teams were busy refining our curriculum and creating learning experiences to prepare students for the rigor of Common Core and the new expectations of PARCC. Summer updates can be found by clicking on the links listed below:
Assessment Team update 
Geometry Team updates
Algebra Team updates

We began the day by exploring tasks and defining the characteristics of a Great Math Task.  A "Great Math task" is a task that:

• Centers on an interesting problem and offers several methods of solution
• Are directed at essential mathematical content as specified in the standards
• Require examination and perseverance (challenging to students)
• Beg for discussion, offering rich discourse on mathematics involved
• Build student understanding, following a clear set of learning expectations
• Warrant a summary look back with reflection and extension opportunities     

(National Council Supervisors of Mathematics, mathedleadership.org)  

In the spring of 2015, PARCC (Partnership for Assessment of  Readiness for College and Career) will become Arizona's new assessment. PARCC is built using the evidence-centered design.  In the design, claims are stated before the test is created.   Tasks that students complete on the PARCC will provide evidence for the claims, therefore, the claims are the foundation of the assessment system.  The master claim is to assess if student are on-track for college and career readiness.  The sub-claims will look at evidence of student understanding of CCSS content and the CCSS Mathematical practices. PARCC is using practice-forward tasks to assess both content and mathematical practices.

To ensure our students are ready for this new assessment, our teachers explored great tasks that are practice-forward tasks.  These tasks are based on content and the mathematical practices are embedded within the task.  A practice-forward task is one in which it is unlikely or impossible to earn full credit on the task without engaging in the practice. Teachers learned what critical questions to ask when planning, delivering, and assessing these types of tasks.  

If the afternoon, teams were given time to meet with the summer curriculum teams, ask questions about curriculum, instruction, and assessment expectations and then meet with their campus collaborative team to plan for the 2013-2014 school year.  Teams reviewed their first semester data and each campus team and district-wide team needs to submit their SMART goal and action steps for the first semester on the Google survey and you can find the link on the home page of SharePoint.  

Thank you to all of the teachers that quit summer vacation a day early to engage in continuous learning, thank you to the facilitators for their continued support of Phoenix Union Mathematics, thank you to Immedia for sponsoring the breakfast,  and thank you to the team leaders for leading the collaborative team time.  Have a great 2013-2014 school year.