Centerville City Schools Two Years Ahead of National Average in Math

Centerville City Schools serve more than 8,300 students in Centerville and Washington Township in southwest Ohio, offering a variety of educational programs to a diverse student population. The district operates 13 school buildings, as well as two preschools and a bus facility with more than 120 school buses that transport students daily to public and non-public schools.

While most schools across America face daunting learning losses, particularly in mathematics, Centerville City Schools are flipping the script. In fact, Centerville students in grades 3-8 are improving twice as fast as the rest of the nation in math despite the pandemic.

The district was included in a recent national study published in The New York Times, led by researchers at Stanford and Harvard. The Times did an in-depth analysis of how the pandemic upended U.S. education. According to the piece, new data offers the clearest portrait yet of how much students have gained back — and how far they still must go.

“There have certainly been learning gaps from the pandemic. The results posted in this report show that our teachers have embraced the challenge of responding to students’ academic and social-emotional needs,” said Adam Ciarlariello, Centerville’s Director of Secondary Curriculum. “Our staff is committed to helping students continue to grow every day. We adopted the Carnegie Learning math solution in our middle and high schools because it provides various tools and experiences to help meet the unique learning needs of a diverse student population.”

Many students were learning in isolation during the pandemic. As they returned to classrooms, teachers began using those tools and experiences to provide opportunities to build a supportive classroom community.

“Embedded in each MATHbook lesson are several activities that encourage students to collaborate with classmates to solve problems,” said Jenn Burr, who teaches math at Centerville’s Tower Heights Middle School. “This has helped students build confidence in their math abilities and communicate with their peers.”

Jaclyn Schick, a math teacher at Centerville’s Watts Middle School, added that teachers strive to create a learning environment that combines guided instruction and group exploration.

“Students are provided opportunities to learn a concept through collaboration with peers, supported by their teachers, and reinforced through a technology platform called MATHia,” Schick said. “This provides an adaptive and interactive learning environment, and students can make connections between MATHia and what we are learning in class.”

“For the past 26 years, MATHia has helped students with the cognitive and conceptual skills that they need to master mathematics,” says Barry Malkin, CEO of Carnegie Learning. “But it takes a special group of dedicated and committed people in a district to achieve these results. We’re proud to have the opportunity to collaborate with Centerville City Schools to help students succeed.”

Originally published on Bussiness Wire