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District committee recommends Illustrative Math; some teachers expressed concern about outreach
Summary
A curriculum committee recommended adopting Illustrative Math (Kiddom publisher) after multi-day vendor reviews and materials analysis. Staff acknowledged uneven teacher participation in open review opportunities and said further public input will be sought before a final board vote in March.
Nate and Brian, district staff members, briefed the board on the elementary math curriculum selection process and a committee recommendation to adopt Illustrative Math (publisher: Kiddom). The committee used multiple criteria (alignment to state recommended instructional materials (RIMS), EdReports reviews, a rubric for rigor, teacher supports and usability) and met for several full days, according to staff.
Staff described a multi-stage process that included vendor presentations, classroom-material reviews and opportunities for teachers and parents to inspect curricula. Brian said the committee included grade-level teachers (two or more per grade), dual-language immersion teachers, learning coaches, principals and math specialists.
Staff acknowledged that in-person review sessions drew limited attendance (about 20 teachers) and that a district survey of teachers produced 57 responses with uneven school-level distribution. Some board members and staff expressed concern that pilot schools and a small number of schools dominated teacher-survey responses; staff said pilot schools were excluded from the committee vote to reduce bias.
The committee’s rubric-based scoring favored Illustrative Math by a narrow margin over other options (i-Ready, Envisions, etc.). Staff said the programs are more similar than different, and they described a training and implementation plan if the board adopts a new curriculum, including spring professional learning dates and summer training for grade-level specialists and learning coaches. Staff said there will be another public hearing before a final board vote in March.
Board members asked for reassurance about numeracy/fluency supports; staff noted that fluency kits and targeted supports will accompany the new curriculum and emphasized principal and learning-coach support for classroom implementation. No final adoption vote was taken at the Feb. 24 session.
