From soup to nuts, from orchard to oven, your kid needs math skills to flourish and grow. Get more Math Checkups to gauge your child’s math progress on our site: wakeupcallnj.com/mathcheckup…

Grade inflation doesn’t serve students. It leaves gaps in their skills that they otherwise might improve. Let’s push for transparency, and the action that results from honest assessment. the74million.org/article/par…

Kudos to California for addressing math problems as early as possible. Kindergartner, 1st grade, and 2nd grade students will now receive annual assessments that can inform the use of tutoring and other supports - and the law also mandates that parents are informed of their child’s results. Since math builds cumulatively, identifying a student’s struggles at a younger age is absolutely essential. With the largest education system in the country is implementing this measure, curriculum companies will make far more resources that other states - hello, New Jersey! - can utilize. As always, policy is one step. Implementation is the real key to success. We’ll be rooting for a consistent and comprehensive rollout in the Golden State, and to learn from it in the Garden State. Learn more in @educationweek: edweek.org/teaching-learning…

The school year is now well underway and your child’s teacher has most likely completed some pre-assessments. Those tests can indicate key gaps and areas of opportunity for you to support and challenge your child in. Show your educators you care and build a working relationship to help your student reach their full potential. Get more helpful questions to guide these essential conversations at: wakeupcallnj.com/questionsfo…

Real accountability can produce real results. But the common-sense policy needs consistent implementation and true commitment across school and state systems. Transparency can be uncomfortable, acknowledges @JebBush in this article for @The74. But it’s the only approach that serves the best interests of students. Read more: the74million.org/article/tru…

Branch out with this question, then get more Math Checkups to gauge your child’s math progress on our site: wakeupcallnj.com/mathcheckup…

While the awareness gap has improved, grade inflation is still a real problem that prevents parents from taking necessary action to help their student reach their true academic potential. Parents trust report cards. That trust shouldn’t be betrayed. Dive into the current state of education from parents' perspective in this report from Learning Heroes: bealearninghero.org/wp-conte…

While parents consistently rate their own child’s education much more favorably than education in the U.S. overall, both measures have hit new lows. Perhaps this can be attributed to a growing awareness that good grades do not guarantee a student is actually gaining the math and reading skills they need to succeed. Admitting there’s a problem is the first step to getting involved and fixing those learning gaps. Let’s step up and give students in NJ and across the US the education they deserve. news.gallup.com/poll/714017/…

In our latest newsblast, we reflect on what Nikole Hannah-Jones' experience indicates for every parent navigating an education system that often prioritizes students feeling good over performing well: mailchi.mp/wakeupcallnj/nhj-…

The awareness gap may be shrinking. In a new survey from @BeALearningHero, 83% of parents believe their child is at or above grade level in math. 4 years ago, 92% believed the same. That still leaves millions of families misinformed about the reality of their students' academic achievement. But the growing recognition of this problem should encourage us all, because when parents know there’s an issue, they act differently and urgently to address it. This includes being more likely to talk to their student’s teacher, request additional support, and find a tutor. Let’s take this relatively good news as an invitation to continue pushing for better. Every parent and student deserve transparency about academic performance. the74million.org/article/par…

Sports practice can be math practice. Talk through this multi-step problem with your family, then get more Math Checkups to gauge your child’s math progress on our site: wakeupcallnj.com/mathcheckup…

The new report from @StudentSuccess shows the real cost of overly-permissive alternative pathways to high school graduation. 1 in 3 Rutgers students has to take remedial math covering middle and high school level concepts. Those courses often don’t earn credit but do harm the chance of a student graduating from college on time. And those students who don’t attend college will have a gap in skills throughout their life. A dishonest diploma isn’t a favor. It’s a dereliction of our duty to prepare every student for life. We know better. Now let’s do better.

This follows a too-familiar and too-damaging pattern. While states rightfully implement benchmarks, screenings, and requirements for literacy standards at early grades, math doesn’t get the same urgent treatment. This is despite the fact that early math skills are even stronger predictors of students' future academic - and life outcomes - success than reading. Gaps in foundational math skills grow over time and foreclose many possible career paths, to say nothing of the problems a lack of numeracy causes in everyday life. Let’s not make the same old mistakes in NJ. Let’s get every student on track in math - right now, more than half of 4th graders are below grade level. apnews.com/article/michigan-…

Half of NJ college students need remedial classes. 40% won’t earn their degree in 6 years. These startling statistics come from a recent report from @StudentSuccess on remediation classes at @RutgersU - and on the failure of NJ’s K-12 education system to prepare students for college. Learn more about this urgent situation and get involved at: weareallsolvers.org/nj/

"A diploma is supposed to signal that a student is prepared for what comes next, whether college, training or employment. Too often, it has become the bookend of a high school career, concealing unfinished learning. The result is a math deficit that gets punted down the road.” Jim Cowen, executive director of @StudentSuccess, goes into the cost of this math deficit and provides some course corrections in this piece for @InsideSourcesDC: dcjournal.com/a-new-school-y…

Take a bite out of this 3rd-grade standard challenge, then get more Math Checkups to gauge your child’s math progress on our site: wakeupcallnj.com/mathcheckup…

This study from @‌nwea drives home just how quickly the window for intervention closes for our youngest students. We must act on the best available data with a corresponding urgency. Read more from the study here: nwea.org/uploads/Behind-the-…

Why does NJ set a lower bar for college readiness than the one set by the ACT test? We can’t answer that. But we - and fellow organizations committed to accountability like @StudentSuccess - can quantify the effects of weakened standards in these alternate pathways to high school graduation. 1/3 of @RutgersU freshmen have to take remediation classes on math courses they allegedly mastered in high school. That leads to higher costs and lower chances of graduating college both overall and in four years. Learn more in the report from @ChadAldeman, and ask yourself: are we giving NJ students and families the education they deserve, or are we just giving them a piece of paper and a pat on the back? weareallsolvers.org/nj/