New ST Math Assignments Feature Makes a Difference While Distance Learning

MIND Research Institute, an award-winning neuroscience and education organization, has added an Assignments feature to its flagship ST Math solution, allowing teachers to differentiate instruction while keeping an entire class learning the same core concepts.
“Together, students and teachers are an amazing team,” said Brett Woudenberg, MIND Research Institute’s CEO. “When we empower-
them each to set their own meaningful goals, then guide and support those goals, each student’s learning path becomes truly personalized and optimized. We’re excited to see how teachers and students will use Assignments to make math instruction more effective and more fun – whether distance learning from home, in the classroom, or in a hybrid model.”
“ST Math helps me see how my students are progressing,” said Billie Jo Lamoureaux, a K-5 math teacher at Morningside Community School in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. “Based on class results, I can address gaps in learning by using the Assignments feature. I can place all students on the same content simultaneously or use the functionality to personalize instruction for each student.”
While MIND encourages ST Math users to keep students on their grade-level content, the new Assignments feature makes it possible to assign Objectives from earlier grades to augment and fortify conceptual understandings of mathematical concepts, or from later grades to challenge students moving at a faster pace. For students who are most impacted by the “COVID Slide,” assigning particular content from the prior grade can help deepen conceptual understanding of earlier concepts. The ST Math team has put together a suggested list of Objectives for teachers to assign at their discretion.
To further assist with differentiation and improve student engagement, the latest version of ST Math has also shifted the focus of student goals to minutes spent and puzzles completed. Whether students are working on concepts from previous grades to reinforce their understanding or rocketing ahead, they can set meaningful goals that reflect their own individual successes and progress.
In related news, the ST Math Theory of Change was evaluated as part of a recent national-scale mega-study, conducted by MIND, exploring 156 school cohorts across 37 states for school years 13/14 through 18/19. The mega-study showed that across all those cohorts and states, when compared to matched controls, grades averaging 60% to 100% of ST Math content generated more growth in percent of students meeting standards – double the effect size – compared to those averaging 40% to 60% coverage. This study joins well over 100 efficacy studies on ST Math – from MIND’s annual transparent evaluations of results of all ST Math school cohorts to independent, third-party validations that meet What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) quasi-experiment and ESSA Tier 2 requirements.
For more information, visit stmath.com.
 
About MIND Research Institute
MIND Research Institute is a neuroscience and education social impact organization dedicated to ensuring that all students are mathematically equipped to solve the world’s most challenging problems. MIND is the creator of ST Math®, a PreK-8 visual instructional program that builds a deep conceptual understanding of math through rigorous learning and creative problem-solving. MIND has also developed programs under MathMINDs to provide students, teachers, and families dynamic ways to actively engage with math, and to close the experience gap for all learners. MathMINDs includes Family Nights, the national K-12 Game-a-thon, and MathMINDs Games.
ST Math is a visual instructional program created by MIND that builds deep conceptual understanding of math through a patented approach that engages, motivates, and challenges PreK-8 students toward higher achievement. ST Math currently reaches more than 1.3 million students and 74,000 teachers at 5,580 schools in all 50 states. For more information, visit mindresearch.org and stmath.com.