New Standards for Improving Two-Year Mathematics Instruction

With fewer than half of high school graduates prepared for college-level mathematics, there has been a renewed focus on both the content and methods of teaching mathematics. The situation is particularly critical at two-year colleges, which enroll the most diverse student population in higher education. Statistics show that 57 percent of students who enroll in community colleges must take developmental mathematics before entering college-level coursework. When students face remediation, it means they have a longer road to completing their mathematics degree requirements. Many give up before they finish the sequence of courses. Last fall, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) issued a report urging a return to teaching "computational fluency" as well as a conceptual understanding of mathematics. The American Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges (AMATYC) has issued "Beyond Crossroads: Implementing Mathematics Standards in the First Two Years of College." The report is a thorough examination of current practices and offers a comprehensive list of guidelines and proposals for improving student performance in mathematics. AMATYC hopes that the report will be a catalyst to raise the level of mathematics education and strengthen efforts to prepare two-year college mathematics students for the workplace or for advanced education. In this article, the author offers insights and commentary on a few of the standards and strategies that AMATYC recommends.