Diane J. Briars

As we move into the second half of the school year, many of us are feeling increasing pressure to engage in special “test prep” activities intended to help our students do well on end-of-year high-stakes tests. How knowledgeable are you about effective actions to prepare yourself and your students for upcoming high-stakes tests? Take this short test and find out!

Diane J. Briars

Adoption of curriculum materials is one of the most important decisions a teacher, school, or district can make. NCTM President Diane Briars offers her “Top Lessons Learned” about curriculum materials evaluation.

Diane J. Briars

It's August—back-to-school time. As you plan for the new school year, don't forget to make explicit plans for engaging parents and families. As you well know, parents can be invaluable supports for their children's mathematics learning. While it's helpful to send parents basic information about their children's mathematics class, such as course outlines, assignments, and descriptions of teacher expectations, they typically need much more than that to be prepared to support their children's mathematics learning.

Diane J. Briars

A little more than four years ago, on June 2, 2010, I was sitting with a small group of mathematics educators in the Peachtree Ridge High School auditorium in Suwanee, Georgia, on the occasion of the release of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Governors, state and district education leaders, business leaders, teacher union leaders, and a number of classroom teachers all described their strong support for CCSS and how having common, rigorous, world-class college- and career-ready standards would benefit both their students and the nation.

Diane J. Briars

As I begin my term as NCTM President, I’m struck by both the challenges currently facing the mathematics education community and the opportunities for systemic improvement in mathematics teaching and learning that addressing these challenges affords. One of our major challenges is, of course, addressing the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM)—facilitating large-scale, effective implementation; preparing for more rigorous, aligned assessments in spring 2015; and supporting the standards themselves.