The early elementary math curriculum used by schools mattered for student achievement in first and second grade¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · causal r? · q3
Currency · newest study 2010 · checked against its sources 2026-10-20 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q3 i? In a large-scale federal study of four early math programs, the curriculum used by the study schools mattered for achievement. → Agodini 2010

Evidence¶

Agodini 2010¶

Agodini, R., Harris, B., Thomas, M., Murphy, R., & Gallagher, L. (2010). Achievement Effects of Four Early Elementary School Math Curricula: Findings for First and Second Graders. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee

q3 · i? · causal · r?

The report's own summary statement of its headline finding: a large-scale study for the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences of four early math programs "shows that the curriculum used by the study schools mattered." No effect sizes are printed on this page.

"This report, the second from a large-scale study for the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences of four early math programs, shows that the curriculum used by the study schools mattered."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• The study is the largest experimental-design study of multiple math curricula, covering 110 schools with this report based on the first cohort of 39 schools — related
• First-grade math achievement is significantly higher under Math Expressions and Saxon Math than under Investigations in Number, Data, and Space and Scott Foresman-Addison Wesley Mathematics — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• A large-scale experimental study compared the effects of the four mathematics curricula on student achievement — related
• After two years, three of four elementary math curricula outperform a fourth in achievement across first and second grades — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• The curriculum evaluation was the second report from a multi-year (2005-2013) IES-funded study of mathematics curricula — related
• A large-scale, rigorous study compared four elementary math curricula's effects on achievement across two years, first through second grade — related
• The better-performing early math curricula raised achievement for several student subgroups, including students in low-scoring and high-poverty schools — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Many U.S. students enter elementary school with poor math skills — related
• The evaluation uses a school-level random assignment design to estimate the relative effects of four early elementary math curricula — related
• Math Expressions and Saxon Math raise first-grade math percentile rank 9 to 12 points more than Investigations and SFAW — a narrower finding that bears on this claim