SFUSD Progress on Offering Algebra in 8th Grade

Press Release

San Francisco (November 17, 2023) - The San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) shared a progress update on meeting the district’s goals for student outcomes in math at the SF Board of Education Regular Meeting on Nov. 14, 2023. At the meeting, SFUSD Superintendent Dr. Matt Wayne and staff shared the district’s vision for math and identified guiding principles to inform the implementation of math practices and policies, including how to implement offering Algebra in the 8th grade.

“This vision and our principles lay the groundwork for SFUSD to significantly improve student outcomes and ensure that students develop as critical thinkers and mathematicians,” SFUSD Superintendent Dr. Matt Wayne said. “We are working with experts, researchers, educators, labor partners, and our communities to implement our vision and principles in the classroom through strong curriculum, high-quality instruction, academic support, and opportunities for acceleration.”

On May 23, 2023, the district held a progress monitoring workshop on math student achievement. Staff identified next steps to improve teaching and learning in math including conducting an audit of our math curriculum and instructional practices, improving math interventions, adopting a new math benchmark assessment, and improving professional development. Additionally, Superintendent Wayne shared that the district needed to update its math policies to provide students with opportunities to accelerate in middle and high school. 

The district has since launched a focus group to inform how to offer Algebra in the 8th grade in SFUSD. The district plans to bring forward recommendations on how to change its approach to math in February 2024. 

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