For MASSPTA

http://www.boston.com/news /local/articles/2007/11/18/a _better_equation/

A Braintree middle school, spurred by federal mandate, redesigns its math curriculum, and the gains are adding up

East Middle School's math instruction earlier this decade appeared to be as reliable as 1 + 1 = 2.   Administrators and teachers at the Braintree school made sure lessons matched state standards, adopted the latest teaching techniques, and bought new textbooks. Students as a whole consistently scored above the state average on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System tests.  But then came 2004 and some disappointing scores for special-education students in the first round of testing under the sweeping No Child Left Behind law. Initially, school officials, like those at dozens of other departments across the region, thought they needed only to tweak instruction for those students. But eventually, East Middle School realized it needed fundamental changes in the teaching of math to all students.

Now, there is evidence the holistic approach may be working. Last month, the school learned that MCAS scores last spring for special-education students shot up 14 percent over the previous year, while scores for others remained strong.