AUSD Math Initiative Wins State Recognition

Friday, 18 November 2011 00:10

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 AUSD Math Initiative Wins State Recognition 
California School Boards Association Announces Golden Bell Award

 

Alameda, Thursday, November 17, 2011 – The Alameda Unified School District (AUSD) has received official notification that the California School Board Association (CSBA) will honor AUSD’s Strategic and Intensive Mathematics Initiative (SIMI) with a prestigious Golden Bell Award at CSBA’s upcoming Annual Education Conference.

The award will take place as part of CSBA’s 32nd Annual Golden Bell Awards at CSBA’s Awards Luncheon on Saturday, December 3.  The Golden Bell Awards program is designed to promote excellence in education by recognizing outstanding programs in school districts and county offices of education throughout California.  At next month’s ceremony, AUSD’s math initiative (SIMI) will be recognized in the Curriculum category. 

SIMI is a highly acclaimed mathematics professional development program that focuses with fidelity on (1) rigorous mathematics content for teachers and students; (2) collaborative lesson design; (3) full-time mathematics coaching support in the classroom; and (4) analysis of student results to help teachers transform their instruction.  AUSD began SIMI after partnering on grants to begin implementation of the SIMI model.  Those initial grants were funded through the California Department of Education’s California Mathematics and Science Partnership program, part of federal Title IIB funding to improve education.  

AUSD has been able to continue this math initiative this school year only because Alameda voters passed Measure A in March.  Measure A establishes and funds eleven specific categories, with each category allocated specific funding to protect core educational values in Alameda.  One of those categories, programs designed to close the achievement gap, provides critical funding for SIMI.

SIMI’s results have consistently shown improved student performance, a narrowing of the achievement gap in mathematics, and high levels of teacher satisfaction. 

Philip Gonsalves serves as the director of SIMI and of the related Mathematics Coaching Consortium (MCC), which provides professional development for the AUSD mathematics coaches: Therese Silva, Jim Miller, Katherine Crawford, Aimée Penn, Hilda Aguilar, and Eric Van Laeken.  “We want students to understand the mathematics, not just do math.  We promote teaching with side-by-side comparisons of multiple approaches to solving problems, to help all students find a way that works for them,” Gonsalves explained. 

Superintendent Vital thanked the teachers serving as math coaches and all classroom teachers participating in the math initiative: “We are fortunate to have so many excellent teachers in Alameda who are dedicated to reflecting on their work, collaborating professionally with their colleagues and adapting new ways of teaching to continue to provide the very best education we can for all our students.  Thank you for all the outstanding work it takes to keep this initiative moving forward to help our students excel in math.”

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