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SunBay Digital Mathematics

Jeremy Roschelle, Phil Vahey, Bowyee Gong, Jennifer Knudsen, Teresa Lara-Meloy, Ken Rafanan, Nicole Shechtman

The SunBay Digital Math project is a collaboration between SRI International, the University of South Florida St. Petersburg (USFSP), the Pinellas County School District, the Helios Foundation, and The Pinellas Education Foundation.

The SunBay Digital Math project will set the direction of the future of middle school mathematics education for Pinellas County. In this one-year pilot the focus will be on (i) refining and evaluating the use of proven effective mathematics resources in select middle school classrooms, and (ii) producing strategic recommendations for sustainable innovation in Pinellas County middle school mathematics education. If funding is secured for future years, the project will be expanded to include more teachers and students. Long-term goals of the SunBay project include demonstrating positive outcomes in students' mathematics achievement, including increasing interest in continuing to take challenging mathematics courses.

During this one-year pilot fifteen seventh grade teachers in seven Pinellas County middle schools will attend workshops and monthly meetings focused on using technology-based curriculum units to teach advanced mathematics concepts aligned with Florida’s Next Generation Sunshine State Standards. The teachers will implement two technology-based curriculum units on advanced math concepts, and have the opportunity to provide input on how the materials can be refined to meet the County’s needs. One unit will focus on students' understanding of rate and proportionality in ways that are important to later mathematics and to science and engineering studies. This unit will be based on SRI’s pioneering work on the SimCalc project. The second unit will focus on core geometry topics. Throughout, the project research team will support teachers’ use of the materials and also gather data on the effectiveness of the materials and technology.

The team will also conduct meetings with key stakeholders in Pinellas County to develop a comprehensive strategic plan with recommendations on expanding the pilot in Pinellas County schools.

6/2009 - 3/2010 (current)