Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Education Mathematics topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Natomas Charter outlines math self-study and multi-year plan to boost middle‑school scores
Summary
Board heard a multi-pronged math self-study identifying curriculum pacing, teacher training and fluency gaps; the plan calls for co-teaching, 'building thinking classrooms' strategies and a multi‑year PD plan.
The Natomas Charter School Board of Directors received a detailed middle‑school math self-study at its March 10 meeting that recommends new professional development, pacing changes and targeted interventions to reverse declines in middle school math performance.
Leaders said the charter has used the CPM mathematics curriculum (adopted in 2019) across middle and high school but the self‑study found uneven implementation, high teacher turnover since 2019 and widening gaps for some students after COVID‑era learning disruptions. The report recommended multiple pathways for teacher training, enhanced pacing to ensure standards are covered, expanded differentiated instruction and stronger literacy supports for students struggling with word problems.
The report drew on classroom observations, teacher interviews, student focus groups and assessment data. Staff said elementary math growth remains positive but performance dips in middle school before rebounding in high school; the team singled out fluency in basic math facts as a recurring barrier to higher‑level work. To address that, the charter plans a new facts‑and‑fluency program, take‑home math game packs for families, online practice tools and targeted learning‑lab interventions.
The self‑study recommends scaling co‑teaching models (a general-education teacher and a special-education teacher jointly delivering instruction) to increase access for students with disabilities and to improve instructional consistency. Staff said co‑teaching has existed in pilot form (one section per grade level in some grades) and reported positive classroom culture and student confidence where it is implemented.
Presenters also described adoption of "building thinking classrooms," a research‑based set of engagement strategies intended to align with CPM and increase access for more students. Next steps include a multi‑year professional development plan, expanded family engagement around fluency and continued use of iReady and other diagnostics to place students and monitor growth.
Board members asked about tutoring, peer‑tutoring effectiveness, co‑teaching scale and retention. Staff said tutoring programs are active this year, peer tutoring is being evaluated, and more robust fluency interventions are being piloted. The team characterized implementation risk as "low to medium" and said additional resources would allow faster scaling.
