The Birmingham Public School System and the University of Alabama at Birmingham formed a partnership to address the problem of declining mathematics achievement in the district. This project will provide major staff development for teachers of grades K-5.
The Birmingham K-5 reform plan has four main elements:
1. The adoption of a high-quality reform-based curriculum series, Everyday Mathematics. 2. The creation of a mathematics Staff Development Team composed of classroom teachers, mathematics educators, and mathematicians, 3. The provision of substantive teacher enhancement for all K-5 teachers in the system, and 4. The development of a plan for on-going teacher renewal after the project ends.
All 907 of the district's K-5 teachers will participate in an intensive staff development program that includes summer institutes and academic year meetings. The Staff Development Team will design and implement the program. The NSF-funded Bridges to Classroom Mathematics Project will work cooperatively with the Staff Development Team in designing the program. Additionally, five Mathematics Resource Teachers will support classroom teachers during implementation. Parents, teachers, administrators, and the business community participated in the planning. The project evaluation will include participation in the core evaluation process, along with all of the other LSC projects.
