Using evidence-based math programs to address learning recovery

Selecting instructional strategies and supplemental resources for supporting student learning recovery shouldn’t be a guessing game. District and school leaders seeking to address learning loss and accelerate growth must consider the importance of evidence-based practices: instructional skills, techniques, and strategies that a study or experiment has shown to be effective.

The latest reports confirm that the pandemic slowed progress in math and reading for millions of U.S. students. As districts seek effective strategies and resources for addressing learning recovery, particularly in math, they should consider investing in evidence-based solutions.

Evidence-based or philosophy-based?

There’s a lot of variability around the instructional advice teachers are given. The strategies covered in education pretraining programs and professional development sessions may not necessarily be consistent with best available evidence – making it all the more important to think critically before investing in a new curriculum or supplemental resource.

Instructional strategies, technologies and resources that don’t have evidence in the form of a published study, research, or experiment are often philosophy-based, and can be detrimental to students’ academic success. When systems adopt un-tested tools it is tantamount to conducting unconsented experimentation with school children, which is never a good idea.