Parents Say Math Course Data Don't Compute

The math wars in Prince William County are not over for some parents, but the conflict might be on hiatus.

County school officials have presented data indicating that elementary students are improving in math. Surveys show, however, that parents and teachers have mixed impressions about whether the county's Investigations in Numbers, Data and Space program is effective.

Representatives from the School Board and a parent group appear locked in opposition.

School Board Chairman Milton C. Johns (At Large) and Vice Chairman Grant Lattin (Occoquan) said in interviews that the system needs to push on with the Investigations program as long as it is balanced with traditional lessons.

But Alexis Miller, who is spearheading the group of opposing parents, said that parents will continue to scrutinize school system data and might file Freedom of Information Act requests to examine documents related to the evaluation of the program.

Loudoun County school officials began introducing some of the Investigations lessons last fall in elementary schools. A math review committee is considering whether the use of the curriculum should be expanded, one of several issues it is studying as it undertakes a broad assessment of math instruction in the district.

The Investigations program requires students to use inanimate objects and protracted methods. Prince William school officials say the program prepares students for algebra, but some parents say it does not focus enough on traditional drills and the memorization of algorithms.

"Certainly, School Board members will keep tabs on math scores and continue to listen to concerns from parents and get updates on teachers' professional development," Johns said. "But for right now, there's no more formal activity on the agenda. We are taking a balanced approach, and we are seeing improvement in all groups and narrowing those gaps" between whites and minorities.

Johns was referring to recent data from the Stanford Diagnostic Mathematics Test showing that all first- and second-graders, particularly whites, improved their scores from last year to this year under the Investigations program.

Blacks and Hispanics made gains, but they barely missed meeting the exam's "expected" score, according to the data. Third-graders posted flat results over the same period on the state Standards of Learning exam, with 90 percent of students passing each year and about 49 percent reaching the "advanced" level.

Many parents question those results, and some have said they think the school system is experimenting at their children's expense.

They cite how the percentage of third-graders reaching the advanced level remained flat on the SOL exam in the past two years. They also say that if Investigations were working, the number of advanced students would rise to the higher levels from previous years.