Mathematics Reform Curricula and Special Education: Identifying Intersections and Implications for Practice

Abstract

In many general education classrooms today, teachers are using “reform” mathematics curricula. These curricula emphasize the application of mathematics in real-life contexts and include such practices as collaborative, group problem solving and student-generated algorithms. Students with learning disabilities in the area of mathematics can experience challenges with these curricula due to lack of content knowledge and requisite skills along with processing and strategy deficits. The purpose of this article is to present information on strategies that can be used to complement math reform curricula to meet the needs of students with math learning disabilities.

Reaching the Mountaintop: Addressing the Common Core Standards in Mathematics for Students with Mathematics Difficulties

“…Foundational skills, such as knowledge of numbers, counting, number combinations, operations, and algorithms, are necessary to complete many mathematics problems (Sayeski & Paulsen, 2010). These foundational skills are often areas of substantial difficulty for students with MD (Andersson, 2008; Butterworth, 2010; Geary et al, 2012).…”

Implementing KeyMath approach for assessment, learning, and teaching for an inclusive middle school classroom in British Columbia

“…Teacher confidence and competence is seen as a key factor in student academic achievement (Ekstam, Korhonen, Linnanmaki & Aunio, 2017;Kitchenham, 2011). Current research supports and has influenced the shift of math education away from rote practice skills in isolated situations to a more student centered and problem solving set of skills (Boyd & Bagerhuff, 2009;Sayeski & Paulsen, 2010;Shin & Bryant, 2015). Furthermore, Boyd and Bagerhuff (2009) explained the use of relevant problems as having the ability to maintain student interest while allowing for the practice of applying math skills to real world situations that students are likely to encounter.…”

“…This method has also been shown to improve student performance and application of learned processes and allows them to "see the point" of math and gives the students impetus to put in the necessary effort to internalize the procedures learned (Boyd & Bagerhuff, 2009). Teachers adopting this approach must relate the mathematical curriculum to real life situations and situations that hold personal relevance and importance for the student as part of the classroom practice (Hallahan, Kauffman, & Pullen, 2015;Sayeski & Paulsen, 2010). Current studies reported that by giving students mathematical problem solving situations related to the real world, the students will not question the importance or use of the material they are being taught and will connect the math to their daily lives (Sayeski & Paulsen, 2010).…”

“…The mathematical instruction of students in special education is a growing concern due to different philosophical and pedagogical approaches to mathematics instruction, the support given to mathematics instruction, and the reinforcement of the mathematics instruction (Bjorklund, 2012;Dieker & Rodriguez, 2013;Ekstam, Korhonen, Linnanmaki, & Aunio, 2017;Griffin, Jitendra & League, 2009;Sayeski & Paulsen, 2010).…”

“…If a student is receiving contradictory math teaching methods of instruction this will lead to increased confusion for the student, especially for learners with special needs (Ekstam, Korhonen, Linnanmaki & Aunio, 2017). This is detrimental to any student but is exacerbated by a special needs student's inherent difficulty in discerning key and salient information (Sayeski & Paulsen, 2010).…”