Bringing Equity to Equations in Common Core Algebra

I attended a conference session focusing on ways to ensure equity in algebra classrooms. Many of the ideas can be applied to non-math classes as well. An enduring theme throughout the session was the need for all teachers to be comfortable hearing student voices.

The presenters contend there are three pillars that support Common Core Algebra Instruction (and notably none of them mention math...)

A. Cultural Competence: Awareness of one's own cultural worldview, Attitudes towards cultural differences, Knowledge of different cultural practices and worldviews and cross cultural skills. (Learn the culture of your students!) One of the elements of building a learning environment is getting to know students. The presenters asked whether any of us could pass the Youth Culture Trivia Quiz...giving rise to the idea that it was important for us to be familiar with youth culture as a way to connect with students.

B. Growth Mindset: people believing that most abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work

C. Social Emotional Learning: the process through which people acquire and apply the knowledge attitudes and skills necessary to:

...understand and manage their emotions
...set and achieve goals
...feel and show empathy
...establish and maintain positive relationships

One method for doing this was to take a problem-based approach to learning math. Phil Daro and a group of veteran middle school math teachers developed The Stepping Stones Protocol as a way to structure classes that would explicitly incorporate the three pillars outlined above. (For a conference presentation on the method, see Demystifying the Common Core  State Standards for Mathematics given by Phil Daro.)

Underlying this approach is the belief that to be successful with students in urban schools, the most impactful actions teachers could make rested squarely in those that involved the creation of a learning environment.

Lastly, the presenters identified several CCSS Mathematical practices that should pervasive in all math classrooms:

Overarching Habits of Mind
1. Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them
6. Attend to precision

Reasoning and Explaining
2. Reason abstractly and quantitatively
3. Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others

Modeling and Using Tools
4. Model with mathematics
5. Use appropriate tools strategically

Seeing Structure and Generalizing
7. Look for and make use of structure
8. Look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning

This work was based on the Bringing Equity to Equations in Common Core Algebra presentation at the 17th National Symposium on Teacher Induction, 2015. Presenters included: Lybroan James and Kevin Drinkard, both of the New Teacher Center.