Driving a Math Materials Selection Process that Centers the Needs of Students

The Math Materials Cadre was a high-quality instructional materials selection cadre presented by Impact Florida, with the technical support and expertise of UPD Consulting, in the 2021-2022 school year. High-Quality Instructional Materials are one of the Five Conditions that Support Great Teaching.

The Cadre consisted of eight virtual learning sessions created to provide personalized support for districts as they navigated the math materials selection process during an adoption year. Cadre participants were asked to consider the role of math vision, stakeholder investment, communication, systems and processes, and local context in the selection process. Specifically, the Cadre worked on strategic selection of math materials that would nurture the math identities and achievement of Florida’s historically least-reached student populations.

Eight Florida districts participated in the Math Materials Cadre: Brevard, Collier, Highlands, Hillsborough, Osceola, Miami-Dade, Marion, and Pasco. Collectively, the eight cadre districts educate more than 870,000 students–more than one-third of the state’s student population, including 36% of state’s students of color, 41% of state’s English Language Learner students, and 36% of state’s low-income students.

Throughout the cadre, learning sessions focused on building a selection process that centers the needs of the students. This process seeks alignment and effectiveness through the Components of Math Materials Selection including: 

• setting a strong vision for mathematics teaching and learning,
• meaningful and authentic collaboration with stakeholders,
• consideration of the local context that influences current selection and future implementation, and
• the need for strong systems and processes to drive the high-quality instructional materials process from selection to implementation. 

The districts that participated in the Districts for Impact Learning Cadre are shown on the map below.