Math coaching coming to Charlo

CHARLO — Two area school districts will take part in a one-of-a-kind research study that examines the effectiveness of instructional coaching in grade school math classes.

Charlo and Dixon schools will participate in the Examining Mathematics Coaching Project, a national research study led by researchers from Montana State University in Bozeman and RMC Research Corporation in Denver, Colo.

“By the end of this study, we will find out what makes a [math] coach effective. That’s something that has never been studied,” Examining Mathematics project director James Burroughs said.

The project, which involves 240 kindergarten through eighth-grade teachers and instructional coaches from 100 schools in six states, is funded by a five-year, $3.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation.

“The research team hopes this study will be beneficial to how mathematics is taught in this country,” Burroughs said.

A 2005 study conducted by the American Institutes for Research found that grade school math students in the U.S. consistently perform below their peers from other countries around the world including Hong Kong, Japan and the Netherlands.

Charlo principal Clair Rasmussen said he believes the Examining Mathematics project will be successful because it has similarities to the Reading First Program, which is currently used in Charlo schools.

The Reading First Program is a government program that was established by the No Child Left Behind Act in 2002 to improve reading levels in grade schools.

“Both school districts [Charlo and Dixon] are interested in any methods on improving instruction and helping our students,” Rasmussen said.

The teachers at Charlo and Dixon schools involved in the Examining Mathematics project will begin this month with an orientation on what type of coaching model they will use. After orientation is completed, the coaching process can begin, Burroughs said.

“The sky is the limit with what these teachers and coaches can achieve,” Burroughs said.

Burroughs said it is up to each coach and teacher to decide what they need to work on to improve how mathematics is taught in each classroom.