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Board highlights math plan and urges clearer framing of NAEP results
Summary
Board members reviewed the department’s statewide math plan and urged clearer public messaging about differences between the state’s ACAP test and the NAEP national assessment.
Board members on Jan. 19 reviewed the State Department of Education’s math plan and discussed a possible companion bill legislators may introduce. Department staff and the superintendent emphasized the state’s move to a more rigorous state assessment (ACAP) and stressed that improving student outcomes requires teacher supports and coherent instructional materials.
Why it matters: Members said a strong, statewide math plan, aligned materials and professional development will influence any legislative proposals and the legislature’s willingness to fund new initiatives. Board members also warned legislators and the public against misinterpreting NAEP results, which are based on a sample and not equivalent to statewide diagnostics.
Discussion highlights - The department said it has trained thousands of teachers and increased school usage of new programs (staff cited a 262% rise in schools using the AMSTeD resource and thousands trained), and staff recommended sharing summary materials with legislators and the public. - Several board members urged the department to explain that NAEP is a sample-based, federally-run assessment designed to provide a national snapshot, not a direct apples-to-apples comparison with ACAP; they asked communications staff to provide materials that explain the differences in item rigor, sampling and intended use. - Legislative timing: Board members noted legislators are preparing potential math legislation; staff said they had discussed ideas with bill sponsors but had not seen a finalized draft. Members expressed a desire to align textbook and curriculum policy before any big math bill moves forward.
Provenance Topic introduction: "Anything else? There's been, I think, 1 or 2 more, since the time I sent this out to y'all..." (transcript excerpt) Topic finish: "If we can somehow verify that and help people understand that NAEP is not... it's not our assessment. And I don't know how you do it, because it's become such a confusing issue..." (transcript excerpt)
Ending Staff said they will circulate one-page summaries of the math plan and suggested messaging that explains differences between the state assessment and NAEP, and will provide materials for board members to share with legislators and local leaders.
