In an effort to spark innovation, TMP designed a competitive application process to elicit promising, replicable ideas from the field. Out of 19 applications received and carefully reviewed by our cross-sector management team, five were selected for funding. Each of the winning applications offered the best opportunities to address the goals of the Demonstration Project portion of our Transition Math Project, and in particular reflected the strongest combination of implementing the College Readiness Standards, strengthening cross-sector partnerships, and leveraging existing resources and activities.
It is with pleasure that we announce the 2005 TMP Demonstration Project grant recipients:
- Columbia Basin College (contact: Madeline Jeffs)
- Eastern Washington University / Spokane Falls Community College / Spokane Community College (contact: Ron Dalla)
- Big Bend Community College (contacts: Jim Hamm and Brinn Harberts)
- Olympic College (contacts: Rick MacLennan and Jo Jacobson)
- Pierce County Careers Connection (contact: Linda Drake)
It’s our hope that with future TMP funding, a second RFP competition will be made available soon. Clearly there is no shortage of creative ideas! The TMP website will outline each winning proposal and chronicle progress toward intended outcomes. Final project reports are due in November. Stay tuned for additional demo project updates.
As the 2005 Washington State Legislative Session got underway, TMP revved up its communication efforts with legislators and staffers. For starters, a platoon of Transition Math Project staff, partners and educational leaders descended on the Capitol in Olympia to participate in hearings. Their charge: to share with legislators the myriad activities underway (and planned) in Washington to improve math preparation for all students.
The hearings provided an ideal opportunity for committee members to ask questions of TMP staff, provide feedback and ultimately learn more about the many activities now underway. For a list of testifiers, visit the TMP calendar section and refer to the December and January pages. And to hear actual testimony, check out TVW’s archives and search for: Improving Student Preparation for College-Level Math, House Higher Education Committee, 12/3/04 and Remediation Rates of Recent High School Graduates, Senate Early Learning, K-12 & Higher Education Committee, 1/20/05
On February 8-9 the Transition Math Project launched successfully the second phase of its work on college readiness standards by convening a group of 30 high school and higher education faculty to begin development of the transitional, or Grade 11/12, Grade Level Expectations (GLEs). Modeled after the already-complete work on the Grade K-10 GLEs (click here for more details), the goal of this work is to provide a clear framework for helping teachers build a curricular bridge or pathway for students to follow from the math expectations defined by the Grade 9/10 GLEs and assessed by the 10th grade Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) to the expectations defined by the College Readiness Standards.
The Grade 11/12 GLE group will be meeting in
subgroups over the next three months focusing on the content areas of
the standards, then reconvene in May to develop a draft of the GLEs to
get feedback from wider audiences of teachers at the Transition Math Project
summer Institute and the series of summer Institutes sponsored by the
Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. To learn more, check in
with the TMP Website
where updates and related resources will be posted as we move forward.
The College Readiness Standards have improved by leaps and bounds over the last few months thanks to the dedication and commitment of our many project partners. Transition Mathematics Project staff have received excellent reviews and some very clear feedback on the working draft standards. We're now at a critical (and exciting) point in the development process and need one final cross-sector feedback session to shift the standards from draft status to their final form for this phase of the project.
To achieve this end, TMP has organized a one-day "roll up your sleeves" working session devoted to finalizing the College Readiness Standards. Members of TMP’s stalwart Review and Development Teams will convene March 10, 2005 at Highline Community College. Participants will be charged with specifying the level of the standards while ensuring clarity and specificity of all standard language. Leading this effort is Skill Standards process expert Terryll Bailey of The Allison Group.
This final session presents a very real opportunity
to bring the standards to fruition. With language and levels clarified,
TMP will be all set to begin to elicit formal system-wide approval of
the standards. Immediately following the session, a detailed record of
the day will be posted on the TMP Website along with the final set of
standards. For a description of all TMP events to date, visit TMP’s
Highlights page. To access the current version of the standards, click
here.
To further heighten statewide attention to the importance of math, TMP recently collaborated with the Partnership for Learning. The result—Got Math?—is a tri-panel color brochure and statewide communication strategy targeting parents, students, teachers and education leaders. The brochure’s eye-catching graphics and up-to-date content will help convey critical math messages and set the record straight on the importance of math preparation and the consequences of remediation.
With Partnership for Learning support, TMP is sponsoring an 85,000 piece mailing of Got Math?. All Washington state high school freshmen will receive Got Math? as part of a packet of information being mailed out through OSPI's spring '05 Student 2 Student Project. An additional 20,000 brochures will be landing on the desks of Washington's education leaders (principals, superintendents, counselors) to share with students, staff and parent groups. And over 6,000 brochures will be distributed to high school juniors and undecided seniors as part of the 2005 Washington Council Spring Tour. The Tour provides an ideal opportunity for juniors and seniors to learn of higher education opportunities and to debunk common misperceptions about the accessibility and affordability of college.
Check the TMP website for future versions
of Got Math?.
On such version planned will include detailed information on and examples
of the new College Readiness Standards. Other proposed versions include
one in Spanish—look for more information coming soon!
The Transition Math Project has come a long way since the August '04 Math Institute in Leavenworth, WA. Since then, TMP has met with hundreds of Washington's math and non-math educators from all sectors to refine, review and revamp (the list of verbs could go on and on) the project's College Readiness Standards. With many hours and miles logged, TMP is heading back to where it all began, namely Leavenworth and the Sleeping Lady Retreat Center. This second intensive multi-day work session will be held from June 28 through July 1, 2005.
June attendees will have the unique opportunity to engage in a process of inquiry with cross-sector peers. Innovative classroom-based assessments, proven pedagogical applications and promising uses of the College Readiness Standards will be a focus. Nationally known experts, such as Dr. Uri Treisman of the University of Texas at Austin Charles A. Dana Center will be on hand to add to and guide the rich discussions and demonstrations.
Prospective participants will be required to complete an online application. Beginning 3/1/05, an application form will be available on the TMP website. For the latest on the June Institute— including lists of resource experts, plenary sessions and workshops—plan to periodically check in with the TMP website. In the meantime, questions can be directed to TMP Coordinator John House at 206.870.5906 or jhouse@sbctc.ctc.edu.
A number of mathematics initiatives are underway all across Washington. To capture these and make them available to a wider audience, TMP has designed an online repository in the form of a clickable regional map of the state. Users need only click on a region to locate detailed information on a number of current projects, courses, studies and resources designed to improve teaching, assessment, placement and information dissemination. Teachers, administrators, counselors, advisors, community members, parents and students will find this growing list of math initiatives both informative and encouraging. To share your best work and broaden your professional learning community, please plan to complete our short, user-friendly online form.
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