As reported last week, the

Fayette County school system has announced its choice for math textbooks.

McGraw Hill was selected for the elementary grades, taking 56 percent

of the overall vote.

What will the new program look

like? How will it compare to the existing program, "Everyday Mathematics"?

And why do two schools still prefer "Everyday Mathematics" while

other schools clearly do not?

McGraw Hill is structured very

differently from the current program, "Everyday Mathematics."

Kindergarten through second grade will have consumable textbooks, where

students can work right in their book. Grades three through five will

have hardback textbooks.

That may sound like a silly

distinguishing trait, but parents will probably be relieved to have a

book to reference when their children need help with their afternoon homework.

The McGraw Hill program offers

mid-chapter and end of chapter reviews, a chapter test, and plenty of

practice exercises to help reinforce new concepts while still retaining

previously taught skills. Concepts are taught by chapters, and appear

sequentially with a gradual increase in difficulty.

The McGraw Hill program comes

equipped with extra materials to bring along those students who need some

extra help and to extend concepts for students who need a little more

challenge.

The McGraw Hill program is

closely aligned with the Georgia Quality Core Curriculum standards, so

students will find themselves prepared for the Georgia tests as well as

the nationally normed tests that are required under the Education Reform

Act of 2000. Calculator use is minimal and appropriate. What students

and parents will realize right off in August is that McGraw Hill is user

friendly.

Is McGraw Hill perfect? No,

and no program is. Textbooks are tools that teachers use to support the

established curriculum of what should be taught and when. McGraw Hill

does not have the level of extension that "Everyday Math" did,

but neither does it produce the level of confusion and frustration that

"Everyday Math" did.

To me, it is far more reasonable

to provide a strong foundational mathematical knowledge base to all students

and supplement for problem solving, than to provide strong problem-solving

techniques without first laying a strong foundation in the basics. This

is considered old-fashioned to some, but to many parents and teachers

across the county, and across the country for that matter, this is a long-awaited

shift back to a more established and proven middle ground.

As stated last week in this

column space, two schools, Braelinn and Kedron, still preferred "Everyday

Mathematics," but the county adopts textbooks as a whole, and all

students in Fayette County will be using the McGraw Hill program.

It is worthy of note, too,

that Braelinn and Kedron also happen to have the highest average scores

in math on standardized tests when compared to other schools in the county.

But is it appropriate to suggest or assume that Kedron and Braelinn scored

well because of "Everyday Mathematics"?

Probably not. If parents believed

that their children's test scores were the result of "Everyday Math,"

they would have voted for it, and only 17 percent of parents at both schools

did.

No, I think that children at

Kedron and Braelinn will do well with any program because they are blessed

with a high ratio of stay-at-home parents. They have someone to help them

with homework, to reteach something they didn't understand the first time.

They may have access to tutors or extra materials, and that's great for

them, but that is not the reality for all Fayette students.

I think it is no coincidence

that teachers and parents in schools with more diverse student populations

wholly rejected "Everyday Math." Fayette Elementary, Tyrone,

Oak Grove, and Peachtree City Elementary registered zero parent votes

for Everyday Math.

Fayette Primary, Brooks, Tyrone,

and East Fayette registered zero teacher votes for "Everyday Math."

Children in families with two working parents, single-parent families,

and families for whom English is a second language are disserved by a

program that fails to provide a strong foundational knowledge base to

ensure that they will succeed in algebra in middle or high school.

Fayette County serves nearly

20,000 students. We represent dozens of nationalities, the gamut of family

configurations, and a huge range in socioeconomic indicators. By and large,

most of us parents are here for the same reason, to provide our children

with the best possible public education that this state has to offer.

We have a fundamental responsibility to ensure that all students are educated.

I think we will be pleased with McGraw Hill.

Change is good. Happy homework!

Education First Watch:

Fayette County Zoning Department has approved five subdivision plat plans

in areas already zoned residential. These developments will add an estimated

109 students to Fayette schools. They are also considering preliminary

plat plans for three other subdivisions on land zoned residential, for

an additional 104 new students.

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