After six months of work by its math task force, the Greater Essex County District School Board is ready to develop a plan to improve student math performance.
"Our performance in math had been steady up until a couple of years ago where there's been a slight decline," says Superintendent of Education Clara Howitt. "When you look relative to the other boards within the province, we are actually at par with them in most districts."
Howitt acknowledges educators across Ontario are concerned about student performance in math, and that's why the board consulted with experts both within the board and outside. Parents have also had their say.
"We received input from almost a thousand parents within our community," she says.
By September, the board plans to have a short-term plan in place, and a longer-term vision by the end of the next school year. It will set the agenda until 2022.
The province plans to mandate an hour of math instruction per day in elementary schools starting this September.
Howitt says 14 recommendations made by the task force will be posted on its website soon.
