The Math Revolution

Despite a deplorably small budget and an ominous lack of support from the government, the Union Public Schools district of Tulsa, Ok is achieving the incredible. Though many of the students are minorities and hail from low-income families, Union boasts exceptional graduation rates and a remarkable STEM-focused curriculum. Their success stems from a comprehensive focus on each individual child within the classroom and beyond, creating a hub for the greater community that includes resources like child care for teen mothers and a student-run garden.

Many charter and private schools in the U.S. have replaced book-based learning and memorization with a do-it-yourself learning style. This is part of the national maker education movement which aims aims to help children believe in their own capabilities and problem solving skills.

Toppenish High School in Washington State boasts a graduation rate of 94% despite the fact that a third of all parents in the town dropped out of school by ninth grade and the student body is all low-income. Responding to low math and science proficiency rates among students, in 2008, Toppenish shifted to a project-based curriculum that emphasizes STEM classes. With the help of federal grants and partnerships with Toppenish businesses, courses help students see the real world applications of math and science skills and get students excited about a college path to a career in biomedicine or engineering.

Bangladesh schools had very low attendance because children were kept home to work and conditions were unsafe for girls, ethnic minorities, and those with disabilities. BRAC, one of the world's largest and most comprehensive NGOs, has built new schools addressing all the reasons, at home and school, that were preventing children from attending.

Young Engineers is a STEM education program that helps children build technical skills and knowledge through hands-on activities with a focus on problem-solving. The organization is women-led, and the majority of its 800 participants are girls.

Schools in the Richardson Independent School District of Texas are updating the methods and measurements they've used to identify gifted students. One way is by testing all second and sixth graders in the district, which helps diminish implicit bias coming from teachers who may discriminate against certain students. Students' scores are also being judged differently by comparing them against others from similar backgrounds, from within their own school, and nationally.

U-46, Chicago's second-largest school district faced a legal suit in 2005 for discrimination of Hispanic students in its gifted programs and is now setting an example for how programs can be upended for good. By 2018 U-46's gifted program consisted of 48% Hispanic students, a better representation of a 57% Hispanic district. The changes implemented by the district included addressing systemic issues by not relying on teacher recommendations and instead testing all third and sixth graders, expanding the number of seats for gifted students. The district also has teachers undergo antiracism training and more.

Benito Juarez Community Academy in Chicago was once reputed for gang violence, struggled to support its predominantly minority students, and was had been on academic probation for nearly two decades. A revolutionary approach to academics that uses a skills-based model tailored to the needs of each individual student and emphasizes true mastery of a skill rather than memorization and regurgitation has had remarkable success, bringing Juarez up to among the top 50 schools in the state for graduation rates and test scores and making it a destination school for students of color.

Despite comprising a third of the population, poor and minority students are drastically underrepresented in gifted education programs across the nation, even if their academic performance is on-par with their white peers. Federal Way Public Academy in Washington has re-examined its methods for finding academically talented kids and is changing the numbers.

Flagstaff STEM City partners schools with professionals and creates kits that teachers can use to bring science into the classroom, teaching students and parents how to think critically and search out information through the application of real world skills like the culinary arts, mechanics, and childcare.