Development Of Mathematics Diagnostic Teaching Kits

In 2014, the foundation approved a Weizmann Institute program for the development and implementation of 45 diagnostic assignments covering the 10th grade curriculum of the advanced 5-unit track. The assignments are presented to the teachers in kits that include the task itself, a detailed indicator for analyzing student answers, and suggestions for follow-up tasks for each student response.

The goal of the program was to help teachers diagnose student thinking and difficulties, to adapt their teaching accordingly and by doing so, to reduce the rates of dropout. Since then, around 300 teachers have implemented between one and five assignments in their classrooms, and the program has been exposed to approximately 800 teachers in total, even more than originally planned.

The teachers who used the teaching kits in their classrooms reported that they helped them better understand student mistakes and ways of thinking, and adapt their teaching appropriately through group work, or one-on-one teaching.

Following the apparent success of this program, we convened five leading teachers who were trained by the program to coach other teachers in integrating diagnostic assignments in their teaching. In this discussion, the teachers expressed their need to start using diagnostic assignments with students from an earlier age. They emphasized that by starting as early as 9^th grade, they would be able to discover student difficulties earlier, and help prepare them better for advanced level mathematics in high school. They also noted that they wish to receive more coaching in their application of the assignments in the class.

In response to these needs, the Weizmann Institute is proposing an expansion of the program for three additional years, in order to develop new materials suitable for 9^th grade students. They plan to develop 25 new teaching kits, which will contain 80 diagnostic assignments, and will be accessible to participating teachers on a designated, searchable website.

The implementation will rely on 15 leading teachers, who will be trained to coach professional learning communities of teachers to use these tasks.  It is expected that 300 ninth grade teachers of the top ability groups will implement these kits in their classrooms in a systematic and continuous manner. Implementation of the assignments will be evaluated to check whether the program contributes to the students’ selection and readiness for 5-unit tracks in high school.

* The text presented above shows the grant as approved by the Foundation Board / Grant 271