Sunday Edition: Utah teachers find new way to help kids succeed in math

Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes

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SALT LAKE CITY – Math scores are an indicator of how children will do in school, and even in life. So it caught KSL TV's attention when we noticed grade school math scores are more than 15% higher in southern Utah than in many other parts of the state. KSL TV talked to educators in the Washington School District who are trying something different, and it is working. If you ask students at Red Mountain Elementary about their favorite subject, you'll get an unexpected answer. They not only like math, but they also believe they’re good at it. “I heard from my teacher that if you understand it then it's easy to you and it's kind of fun to you. And that's how I feel," Eli Loris, a student, said. Kari Shewmake, a first-grade teacher, said she started a new way of teaching called backwards teaching. Shewmake said she gives kids a problem, and they have to work together to try to solve it first. Then they come back and discuss the problem. “It used to be just scripted. I would do it, then we'd do it together, and then the kids do the math. This is completely opposite now," Shewmake said. "We start with a little math task. Like, today's was talking about how to put shapes together. I gave the kids some shapes and they go do the work. Then we come back together and discuss what shapes they made and how it worked together. So, they're doing the work before I tell them what they should be doing for math. It seems to be working. The difference is shown in their scores. Statewide, Acadience test scores show 67% of 1st through 3rd graders are making typical progress. In Washington County, 89% of kids make typical progress. Equally impressive, English language learners and special education students also scored above average.

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