www.wamap.org: An Innovation in Math Course Management and Assessment

Imagine having a free, web-based, open-source, math assessment, course management and student support resource at your finger tips. And what if this same resource could ask and grade rich mathematical questions? How would math faculty and students benefit from such a system – a system also infused with discussion forums and opportunities for connecting, practicing and sharing? WAMAP, or Washington Mathematics Assessment and Placement, is quickly becoming what was once only imagined. Since hosting a WAMAP demonstration at last year's TMP Summer Math Institute, TMP has been working to promote and support WAMAP's ongoing development. (For more on placement in Washington, see related article: Math Placement: TMP Proposes Improved Statewide Testing Program )

WAMAP was created to address the needs of online math assessment. It runs IMathAS, an open source web-based math assessment software for delivery and automatic grading of math homework and tests. Questions are algorithmically generated so each student gets a different version of each question, and numerical and math expression answers can be computer graded. WAMAP.org provides use free to Washington State high school and college instructors, graciously funded by the Transition Math Project.

This project began as a proof-of-concept, showing that it was possible to create custom software for asking non-multiple choice questions for placement and other assessment. It has grown into a niche targeted course management system, with math assessment still at the cornerstone. Existing systems, like BlackBoard, lack the ability to ask and grade rich mathematical questions, and lack the ability to easily display math and graphs in course items and discussion forums.

A grant from the Distance Learning Council allowed development of training guides and about 2000 questions ranging from arithmetic through calculus (many question were translated from the University of Rochester’s WeBWork system). Content in WAMAP exists in an open-source community shared model, so through a growing community of users, the content continues to grow. Likewise, feedback from the user community has guided the expansion of the software’s capability. To its credit, WAMAP is now serving over 800 students and has a growing body of instructors contributing to the site's content and exploring its growing features.

WAMAP was just approved for a second grant from the Distance Learning Council for content development. And it also plans to pursue an NSF grant for improvement and optimization of the underlying software. Future plans include supporting the statewide placement test initiative, possibly through development of online practice tests. Individual schools are also considering using the WAMAP system for delivery of college-wide diagnostic assessments. A few high-schools have begun exploring the system, and the possibility for developing connections between high-school instructors and college instructors through use of a common system and content also seems promising.

Visit the WAMAP site to learn more first-hand (www.WAMAP.org). And to contact WAMAP/IMathAS developer and Pierce College Math Instructor, David Lippman, email: DLippman@pierce.ctc.edu.

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Communication Update

Making high school students successful college students - SBCTC Legislative News Publication - January 19, 2007, Ed. 2

TMP management team members and partners continue to meet with various key groups, including legislators and staff, to share project progress and impacts. A recent House Higher Education Committee Work Session was summarized in a recent edition of the SBCTC's Legislative News publication and is reprinted here for your convenience. Kudos to Olympic College Vice President Rick MacLennan and the TMP-II Olympic Peninsula Project for doing a great job providing testimony on key aspects of their work to date. To access a recording of the session, click here.

Focus on the Transition Math Project - SBCTC Creating Opportunities eZine - February 2007

The February edition of the SBCTC online magazine, Creating Opportunities eZine, features the Transition Mathematics Project. This online magazine, written by the staff of the State Board Communications Office, is designed to share best practices and provide in-depth coverage of issues and trends affecting the two-year colleges. We encourage you to share this publication broadly. Click here to access The February edition.

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It's Very Apparent - Parents Count for Student Success

Parent involvement and engagement in school is more important than ever. What we clearly know is that students with engaged parents are more likely to earn higher grades and test scores, enroll in higher level programs, and graduate and go to college. With this in mind, it's no surprise then that TMP has been working to more effectively reach out to parents to talk about math.

With the help of some very engaged parents and the TMP local partnerships, a new parent brochure – Planning 4 Math Success – has been created and added to our online toolkit for use by the local regions. TMP and local project partners have been initiating meetings with parent groups since January to elicit feedback and suggestions on how best to communicate with them. The parent meetings have also sought to raise awareness not only of the importance of math, but of concrete action steps that can be taken now to help ensure the math success of all students. Four clear, concrete steps with corresponding tips and suggestions make up the new brochure. And Math Lab, TMP’s web-based parent / student resource repository, builds on the content of the new brochure.

One recent late evening meeting, hosted by TMP’s Olympic Peninsula Partnership, found thirteen parents munching cookies in room 202 of South Kitsap High for nearly two hours as they offered feedback on the new brochure and much more. Parents addressed such topics as effective math messaging, helpful resources and college and career success. The group even broadened the discussion to include TMP’s student attributes and ideas for enhancing math support efforts. Needless to say, there was no shortage of ideas.

Char Nelson, Cathy Gangnes and Aimee Gordon Warthen of the Olympic Partnership co-facilitated and pulled out all the stops to recruit parents from throughout the local community. If interested in support in hosting similar parent exchanges, contact TMP coordinator John House at jhouse@highline.edu.

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Getting to Know ... Bill Moore, TMP Project Manager

I’ve worked for the Washington State Board for Community & Technical Colleges since 1990, currently serving as the policy associate for assessment, teaching and learning. While my title has changed slightly in my tenure here, my essential focus has stayed the same: to provide system leadership for a statewide assessment initiative dedicated to helping faculty and administrators improve teaching and learning environments, assessment practices, and learning outcomes for students. For 16 years our Washington Assessment Group has convened an annual assessment conference that has grown to a regional focus in recent years, attracting 250-300 participants annually, and produces a monthly electronic newsletter focusing on assessment, teaching and learning issues. My background in higher education prior to coming to the Board staff was primarily in student affairs/student services work and exclusively with four-year institutions, so I frankly never imagined I’d still be here after 16 years! In part what’s kept me here all of this time is what drew me to move across the country (from Virginia) to take the job in the first place, namely, the vibrant higher education community that Washington had (and has) and the marvelous people I have worked with over the years. More importantly, though, the work has never grown stale because I’ve consistently had the opportunity—some might say luxury!—over the years to shape the work I do in response to changing educational circumstances and critical issues, and that’s how I came to get involved in the Transition Math Project (TMP).

Our TMP work really began several years ago when our agency decided to take seriously the issue of exploring and preparing for the impact of K-12 education reform, a focus that led eventually to a series of state-level gatherings of college and school district leaders. Math—and specifically significant concerns about the level of pre-college math taken by recent high school graduates entering higher education institutions in Washington—emerged from those discussions as the most pressing issue to address with respect to aligning the sectors. At the same time we were talking with the Gates Foundation about ways they could collaborate with us to support key education reform efforts specifically in Washington, not just nationally, and math was at the top of their list as well. A key message we had heard clearly from our K-12 colleagues was the need for greater clarity and consistency around the expectations we had for students entering college, so we decided to focus on the “transition math” concepts defining what students should know and be able to do as they move from the math WASL expectations in 10th grade to success in college-level math courses by articulating College Readiness Standards built on the foundation of the Grade Level Expectations for grades 9-10. When we got funding in 2004 from the Legislature and the Gates Foundation to pursue this work, TMP Phase I was underway—and now here we are in 2007 trying to make these standards real and alive for students and teachers around the state!

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Partnership Spotlight: Yakima Valley Project

Washington's Transition Math project is supporting a unique math improvement and college readiness initiative in the Yakima Valley. An important component of the Valley's work is to enhance teacher-to-teacher, sector-to-sector collaborations. The ultimate goal of this work – to increase success in math for all students and enhance the professional development of teachers – directly aligns with TMP's goals and the state's emerging math improvement plans. In many ways, this local initiative's power is grounded in these vital teacher-to-teacher collaborations. So in an effort to respectfully observe and share helpful, nonevaluative feedback, college math instructors have begun sitting in on high school math classes and high school math teachers on college classes. The early results are showing promise.

Wanda Merz, Wapato High School math teacher and George Lopez, Yakima Valley Community College math instructor, have each gained increased understanding of their sector counterparts through the teacher-to-teacher collaborations. When asked about his recent high school observation experience, Mr. Lopez noted, "We need more observation opportunities like this. By talking to each other – across the sectors – I gained increased respect for the work of the teachers I was observing. Ms. Merz stated how different yet surprisingly similar high school and college classes can be. "This is an exciting opportunity and it's helpful to see the same content taught in different atmospheres, each with unique approaches ", she noted. "I walked away from the experience knowing that important mathematics is being taught. Until now, I just wasn't as aware but I now know more about the good stuff going on and I look forward to more in-depth conversations with my K-12 math colleagues", said Mr. Lopez.

The Yakima Valley Math Partnership began this past summer with a grant from the Transition Mathematics Project and runs through 2009. For more information on the Yakima Valley Partnership, contact Terrie Geaudreau, lead project manager, Educational Service District 105 (terrieg@esd105.wednet.edu). Visit www.transitionmathproject.org/local_partnerships. for additional information on the TMP and its thirteen local projects and statewide initiatives

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Math Placement

TMP Proposed Testing Program

The Transition Math Project has proposed the development of an improved statewide testing program to distinguish between students who are college ready and those who are not. The current placement test for math used by the state baccalaureate institutions, the Washington Math Placement Test, would be modified under this proposal to serve as a common college readiness test. Working through the TMP, faculty from state two- and four-year colleges and universities, along with K-12 teachers, have proposed establishing a college readiness test to provide a common performance standard for the foundational math skills needed to be ready for college-level math across all public higher education institutions in Washington (note: students needing to take more advanced math, like calculus, at college entry would need additional skills). Under the TMP proposal this test could be used with high school students in 10th- or 11th-grade to assess their readiness for college-level math and help diagnose any areas of college-level math preparation deficiencies.

For more on TMP's placement effort, contact TMP Director, Bill Moore at bmoore@sbctc.ctc.edu.

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TMP Summer Institute 2007

The Transition Math Project's next Institute is now set for August 20-24, 2007 at the Sleeping Lady Mountain Retreat. Grab your shorts, sandals and best ideas, and come join us in the mountains of Leavenworth, Washington.

Beginning Monday, August 20 to Friday, August 24, TMP's third major summer event will bring together more than eighty participants and resource experts from Washington and beyond with the singular focus of improving math success for all students. This broad goal will undoubtedly take on many forms over the five days but student math success and post-secondary readiness will remain as the central thread throughout the week. The majority of participants will have in-depth backgrounds in mathematics teaching, assessment and curricular design. Some participants will also bring in-depth school / college leadership experience while still others will add business and communications savvy to the mix.

Four strands form the backdrop for this summer event. From each, sub-strands and cross-connections will emerge and a mix of sessions will flow from all strands. The major strands include:

• Designing alternative curricula & instructional materials

• Developing coaches & professional learning communities

• Crafting classroom tasks & rich, balanced assessments

• Communicating with students & parents about the nature and importance of math

Admission is competitive, but attendance for those accepted is cost-free. Team composition can vary: cross-sector (K-12, higher ed), cross-discipline, and multi-school district teams are just some examples. Teams must apply and propose work plans for the week that complement TMP's core parameters. Teams proposing innovative ideas while being realistic in their scope, timelines and workplans will have the best chances for attending this all expense paid TMP event.

Teams are planning now so don't wait. Space is limited. An online application form is available on the TMP site and is due by 5PM, May 1, 2007. For additional information, contact the TMP Coordinator by emailing jhouse@highline.edu or calling 206.870.5906.

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Transition Math Project: Promoting Quality Professional Development

With the active participation of our 13 local partnerships, the TMP In-Service Calendar is becoming significantly more interacitve and discussion-oriented. Working cross-sector and across the TMP partnerships, math teachers and faculty have begun addressing such topics as the College Readiness Standards themselves, 11/12 Math Bridge Courses and Effective Math Coaching.

Couple these informative and examples-rich events with the other in-service offerings on our calendar – Agile Mind Demos, the WAMAP online tool and Navigation 101 – and you'll see how TMP continues to work toward being a useful resource for Washington's college-readiness initiatives.

If you are a Washington educator or administrator who would like to join a discussion on these topics or any others on our schedule, visit the TMP In-Service Event Calendar to register.

These events are presented using the Elluminate LIVE! online conferencing tool and is one more way TMP is supporting collaboration across our state. For more information on Elluminate LIVE! visit www.elluminate.com. It just takes a few minutes to configure most computers.

For more information on the TMP In-Service Event Calendar, email Chris Gildner at cgildner@highline.edu.

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