Tennessee Lawmakers Put State Department of Education on Notice About Low Math Proficiency Rate

Tennessee lawmakers questioned Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE) representatives after they revealed the low percentage of state high school students who were proficient in math.

Tennessee’s Deputy Commissioner of Education Eve Carney and Assistant Commissioner of Academic Strategy Christy Wall appeared before the State House Education Instruction Committee on Tuesday to discuss upcoming math instructional strategies for Tennessee schools.

During their presentation, the TDOE representatives said that 22 percent of the state’s high school students – just above one in five –  were proficient in math based on results from the latest Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP), the state’s annual standardized test for third graders to 11th graders. State Representative John Ragan (R-Oak Ridge) said, “I know you presented the positive side of statistics, what was it 22 percent were on grade level? That means that 78 percent were not. that is a very dismal number.”

Ragan added, “Speaking of figures, have you done any analysis of urban vs rural schools in Math?”

“I can say our data teams have looked at data across students groups, as well as individual groups, and…there was one other division that they’ve already”, the deputy commissioner answered, “I don’t know that I’ve seen urban vs rural, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t one that hasn’t been run. It is one that I am not familiar with this morning.”

The lawmaker took a moment to remind the TDOE representatives that “this state had undergone a lawsuit that generated the BEP for rural vs urban differences,” and as such should be something we pay attention to. He then proceeded to ask for data from studies based on demographic differences, teacher sources – performance of students by the source of the teacher, and analysis of the performance of students relative to expenditure per student. None of Ragan’s requested data was readily available, but Carney promised to make it available to lawmakers in a timely fashion.

State Representative Scott Cepicky (R-Culleoka) also asked about the low percentage of high school students who are proficient in math.

“It seems like we said 22 percent of our kids are on grade level in high school in mathematics. And it seems you just glossed over that. Like, 78 percent of our kids are not, and you never answered. You never offered a reason why you’re concerned why 78 percent of our kids are not on grade level math,” said the representative. “I would like to know from the department: is this a concern of the Department of Education that 78 percent of our kids are not on grade level in math?”

Carney responded, “I can assure you that 22 percent is not acceptable for me. It is not acceptable for the Commissioner or any of us in the department.”

She added, “I can tell you, we are working very, very, hard as we’ve tried to double down on literacy and get the ball rolling. We now stand ready to do the same for mathematics.”

In the last three years, Tennessee has passed several laws designed to increase literacy outputs for Tennessee students, including the Tennessee Learning loss Remediation and Student Acceleration Act. Cepicky asked if the department had similar plans to improve math scores. Carney assured him that those “conversations were now taking place.”

In response, Cepicky questioned how much teachers were being included in those conversations, saying, “It is like we are in search of a solution but, we don’t want to ask the right people how to solve the problem.”

Both Carney and Walls assured committee members that the department valued teachers and actively sought ways to increase their input in designing strategies.

Republican lawmakers weren’t alone in voicing concerns. State Representatives Yusuf Hakeem (D-Chattanooga) and Vincent Dixie (D-Nashville) raised questions about the amount of teacher input the TDOE was including in their strategic plans. Dixie offered to help hold town halls to ease the responsibility of department officials.

Hakeem agreed with Cepicky’s statements.

“It may not be something we can put in a bill in a bill, but we are all tired of the repetition of going through this process year after year, and not getting the results we are looking for,” Hakeem said.

Earlier in the proceedings, Cepicky described Tennessee as being in a state of perpetual reform for at least a decade, while scores continued to flounder. He said, “If Tennessee is in a constant state of reform, new programs, new textbooks, new curriculum, new this, and new that, and we keep trying new stuff over and over, it leads to big money.”

Cepicky said that money could be better used for improving teacher salaries and working conditions. He closed his comments by asking the TDOE officials, “When will we get out of the education reform business because we do it the best?”

Carney and Walls reassured the committee that the department was working in that direction but supplied no timeline for transition.

The plans for math instruction shared by the TDOE include a transition to new standards, which are accompanied by new instructional materials. Local districts are currently negotiating contracts with publishers for materials to use beginning with the upcoming school year. The new standards will most impact high school math, with statistics being introduced. Tutoring, summer camps, and a program for math similar to Reading 360 are all included in plans going forth.

This week’s House Education Instruction Committee meeting was the last for this session.

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TC Weber is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. He also writes the blog Dad Gone Wild. Follow TC on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected]. He’s the proud parent of two public school children and the spouse of a public school teacher.