Research

Validated Through Ten Years of Research

For twenty-five years, Dr. Karen Fuson, professor emeritus of education and psychology at Northwestern University, researched effective methods of teaching and learning mathematics.

“When instruction focuses on a small number of key areas of emphasis, students gain extended experience with core concepts and skills.”

–Curriculum Focal Points, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, p.5

Institute of Education Sciences/Mathematica Study

Results give Math Expressions the Edge

Recently-released results from a large-scale federal study commissioned by the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences show that Math Expressions, published by global education leader Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, significantly outperforms other early mathematics programs in instructional effectiveness and student achievement.

“Achievement Effects of Four Early Elementary School Math Curricula” presents findings from randomized trials of first-graders in 39 schools who used various math curricula during the 2006-2007 school year. The study, which is the largest of its kind, compared the instructional approaches of four widely used elementary school mathematics programs in the United States:

Schools assigned to Math Expressions and Saxon Math reported significantly higher student achievement than those assigned to Investigations in Number, Data, and Space and Scott Foresman-Addison Wesley Mathematics (SFAW), both published by Pearson.
An average-performing student's percentile rank would improve by 9-12 points if the school used Math Expressions
Students in subgroups, including those in lower-performing schools and in schools with higher poverty levels who used Math Expressions, showed improvements greater than those using the other programs.

Click on the article to find out what Education Week had to say!

Chelmsford Increases Scores

Math Expressions behind rise in proficiency

District Demographics:
Chelmsford School District, located in Chelmsford, MA, comprises 8 schools with a combined enrollment of 5,522.

Results:

In one year of use, Grade 3 MCAS scores increased from 63% at/above proficient to 75% at/above proficient – a gain of 12 percentage points.
In one year of use, Grade 5 MCAS scores increased from 51% at/above proficient to 61% at/above proficient – a gain of 10 percentage points.

Chelmsford SD Grade 3 and 5 MCAS
Percent At / Above Proficient
2006-2007

Woodbridge Increases Scores

Math Expressions behind rise in proficiency

District Demographics:
Woodbridge School District, located in Bridgeville, DE comprises 5 schools with a combined enrollment of 1,967.

Results:

In one year of use, Grade 3 DSTP scores increased from 65.82% at/above proficient to 85.62% at/above proficient – a gain of 19.8 percentage points.
In one year of use, Grade 5 DSTP scores increased from 75.46% at/above proficient to 81.56% at/above proficient – a gain of 6.1 percentage points.

School Profile: http://dstp.doe.k12.de.us/DSTPMart9/DistrictSumMenu.aspx?Dist=Woodbridge

Effective with Broad Range of Students

Field tests show substantial proficiency gains

Math Expressions was field-tested in both urban and suburban classrooms, with more than 5,000 English- and non-English-speaking students. Students using Math Expressions demonstrated substantial increases in standardized test scores as well as broader measures of student learning.