Think Through Math
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Investigating the Effectiveness of Think Through Math
In this action research
project I investigated the effectiveness of the state funded intervention math
program Think Through Math. Think
Through Math is a web based adaptive math program designed to personalize
instruction and close learning gaps in students. To measure the effectiveness of the program
I looked at the following data points:
- Middle
of the Year I Benchmark Scores
- Middle
of the Year II Benchmark Scores
- Think
Through Math Usage Reports
I researched the
suggested usage guidelines for Think Through Math. According to their research to increase
student performance students should complete at least 5 lessons per month or 2
-3 lessons per week and work in the program 45 minutes per week. I looked at campus usage reports for
September thru April and zeroed in the campuses that averaged around 40 lessons
(5 lessons x 8 months). I then zoomed in
farther and discovered which teachers, classes, and/or grade levels on these
campuses averaged the highest number of lessons completed. From here I found the district benchmark data
for each of these teachers, classes, and/or grade levels. I compared the Middle of the Year benchmark I
to the Middle of the Year benchmark II to see if there was growth in student
performance. On average student
performance between the benchmarks increased by 9 points in these classes/grade
levels with the highest number of completed lessons.
These findings are
important to the district because we encourage teachers to use the program and
it is state funded. A lot of time is
spent setting up teacher and student accounts, providing professional
development, and supporting teachers on campuses with the program. This research was important to Lamar Middle
School because our schedule provides during the school-day Tier II intervention
by double-blocking students who did not meet standard on 2014 STAAR for
math. Additional time in math would not
benefit these students if they are missing concepts due to a learning gap from
a previous year. Think Through Math
provided a placement test and determined a personal learning path for each
student to help close these learning gaps.
This was beneficial to our teachers because they did not have to make
extra lesson plans for these students and the program provided task
differentiation during the 90 minute block.
Next year, I’d like to
compare a school that does not use the program and a school that uses the
program regularly. Also from my teacher
survey I realized some teachers need more support and training on how the
different types of problems are solved, i.e. pull-down menus, drag-n-drop, and
etc. I plan to provide a classroom model
of how to implement the program in different settings; 45 minute classes, 90
minute block, after-school, and Saturday school.
