Report for 7th Grade
Overall Summary
The materials reviewed for Grade 7 do not meet the alignment expectations for the CCSSM. During the review for focus and coherence, there were concepts assessed that are beyond the Grade 7 CCSSM. The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 7 had less than 50 percent of the work on the major clusters of 7.RP.A, 7.NS.A 7.EE.A and 7.EE.B. The content could be covered in 153 days. There are areas where the materials have strong connections and areas that could be stronger. In the teacher edition, the CCSSM are listed for each lesson. In the student edition, the lesson objective is listed each time and these objectives are based on the CCSSM. Since the materials do not meet expectations for focus and coherence, they were not reviewed for rigor and the mathematical practices.
7th Grade
Alignment
Usability
Overview of Gateway 1
Focus & Coherence
The materials reviewed for Grade 7 do not meet the expectations for focusing on major work and coherence. There are concepts assessed that are beyond the Grade 7 CCSSM. The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 7 had less than 50 percent of the work on the major clusters of 7.RP.A, 7.NS.A 7.EE.A and 7.EE.B. The content could be covered in 153 days. There are areas where the materials have strong connections and areas that could be stronger. In the teacher edition, the CCSSM are listed for each lesson. In the student edition, the lesson objective is listed each time and these objectives are based on the CCSSM.
Gateway 1
Criterion 1.1: Focus
The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 7 do not meet expectations for assessing material at the Grade 7 level. There are too many concepts assessed that are beyond the Grade 7 CCSSM, and the alteration or omission of these items would significantly impact the structure of the materials. In chapters 1, 6, 7 and 8, there are assessment items that most closely align to standards above Grade 7 grade, and their inclusion is not mathematically reasonable for Grade 7. The alteration or omission of these items would significantly impact the underlying structure of the materials.
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The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 7 do not meet the expectations for assessing materials at the Grade 7 level. There are some assessment items that align most closely to standards above Grade 7 whose inclusion is mathematically reasonable. However, there are too many items that align most closely to standards above Grade 7 whose inclusion is not mathematically reasonable and whose alteration or omission would significantly impact the underlying structure of the materials.
- In Chapter 1, there are items that assess irrational numbers, which align to 8.NS.A. Also, Chapter 1 assesses rounding using significant digits which does not closely align to any Grade 7 standards. The inclusion of these items is not mathematically reasonable, but the items could be altered or omitted without significantly impacting the underlying structure of the materials.
- In Chapter 4, there are equations and inequalities with variables on both sides, which most closely aligns to 8.EE.C.7. The inclusion of these items is mathematically reasonable as they are introduced along with equations and inequalities that do align to Grade 7 standards.
- In Chapter 5, there are questions that directly assess whether or not students specifically know inverse proportions. In Grade 7, students need to be able to identify proportional and non-proportional situations, 7.RP.A.2. The inclusion of these items is mathematically reasonable as inverse proportions could be one example of non-proportional situations.
- In Chapter 6, there are a few questions that assess angle properties associated with parallel lines and triangles, which most closely align to 8.G.A.5. The inclusion of these items is not mathematically reasonable, and their alteration or omission would significantly impact the underlying structure of the materials.
- Perpendicular and angle bisectors are assessed in Chapter 7, which aligns to G.CO.D.12. The inclusion of these items is not mathematically reasonable, and their alteration or omission would significantly impact the underlying structure of the materials.
- Chapter 8 assesses volume of cones, cylinders and spheres, which aligns to 8.G.C.9. The inclusion of these items is not mathematically reasonable, and their alteration or omission would significantly impact the underlying structure of the materials.
*Evidence updated 10/27/15
Criterion 1.2: Coherence
The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 7 do not meet the expectations for spending the majority of class time on the major clusters for Grade 7. The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 7 spend approximately 50% of the time on the major clusters 7.RP.A, 7.NS.A, 7.EE.A and 7.EE.B.
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The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 7 do not meet the expectations for spending the majority of class time on the major clusters for Grade 7.
- The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 7 spend approximately 50% of the time on the major clusters 7.RP.A, 7.NS.A, 7.EE.A and 7.EE.B.
Criterion 1.3: Coherence
The materials reviewed for Grade 7 do not meet the expectations for coherence. The content could be covered in 153 days. There are areas where the materials have strong connections between concepts and skills and areas that could be stronger in connecting domains and clusters. "Concepts and Skills Across the Curriculum" link the current material to the skills progression to both the previous and the next grade. In the teacher edition, the CCSSM are listed for each lesson. In the student edition the lesson objective is listed each time and these objectives are based on the CCSS.
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The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 7 do not meet the expectations for the supporting content enhancing the major work.
- Some of the supporting work noted for Grade 7 is actually Grade 6 or Grade 8 work.
- The work that is Grade 7 does support the major work for Grade 7.
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The materials reviewed for Grade 7 partially meet the expectations for the amount of content designated being viable for one school year.
- The content could be covered in 153 days.
- While overall it is viable for a school year the amount of time on the major work for Grade 7 is less than 65% of the year and teachers would need to find supplemental materials to cover the content for the grade.
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The materials reviewed for Grade 7 meet the expectations for the progressions in the standards.
- "Concepts and Skills Across the Curriculum" link the current material to the skills progression to both the previous and the next grade.
- Grade level clusters are mostly focused on one cluster for each chapter (e.g., chapter 2: 7.NS1-2, chapter 4: 7.EE.4, chapter 5: 7.RP.1-2)
- Every chapter starts with a section of recalling prior knowledge with a review and a quick check practice.
- Math background pages give teachers a review of the background knowledge needed for the unit.
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The materials reviewed for Grade 7 partially meet the expectations for fostering coherence through connections at a single grade.
- In the teacher edition the CCSSM are listed for each lesson.
- In the student edition the lesson objective is listed each time and these objectives are based on the CCSSM.
- Grade level clusters are focused on one cluster for each chapter.
- There are not explicit connections between domains or clusters.
Overview of Gateway 2
Rigor & Mathematical Practices
Criterion 2.1: Rigor
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Criterion 2.2: Math Practices
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Overview of Gateway 3
Usability
Criterion 3.1: Use & Design
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Criterion 3.2: Teacher Planning
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Criterion 3.3: Assessment
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Criterion 3.4: Differentiation
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Criterion 3.5: Technology
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Report Overview
Summary of Alignment & Usability for Math in Focus | Math
Product Notes
Kindergarten assessments were not reviewed because they are not included in the materials. The assessment book is available for purchase separately from the main materials. Grades 1 and 2 assessments were reviewed.
Math K-2
The grade band texts include several future grade-level assessments. The grade band texts do not meet the publisher criteria for having the large majority of time spent on the major work of the grade. Supporting and additional clusters are treated separately therefore not counted as a part of the major work. The materials are not coherent or consistent with the standards. There is not enough content for one school year.
Kindergarten
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Usability
1st Grade
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Usability
2nd Grade
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Usability
Math 3-5
The grade band texts have several future grade-level assessments. The grade band texts do not meet the expectations for the large majority of time spent on the major work of the grade. Supporting and additional clusters are treated separately and do not enhance the major work. The materials are not coherent or consistent with the standards. There is not enough content for one school year.
3rd Grade
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Usability
4th Grade
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Usability
5th Grade
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Usability
Math 6-8
The materials reviewed for grades 6-8 do not meet the expectations for alignment to the CCSSM. The materials devote the majority of class time to the major work for Grades 6 through 8. The materials are coherent and consistent with the CCSSM for Grade 8, but Grades 6 and 7 have concepts beyond those grades. There are a few times that the supporting work enhances the understanding of the major clusters. The CCSSM are visibly listed on the student pages and in the teacher edition. Since the materials did not meet the expectation for Gateway 1 in Grades 6 and 7, those grades were not reviewed in Gateway 2. The Grade 8 text excels at mathematical language, but does not address the full meaning of the mathematical practices or spend sufficient time on building conceptual understanding.