Madison Metropolitan School District will modernize its mathematics instruction after current instructional materials have been in use for over a decade.
Updates to its curriculum look to bring a higher-quality education in math for 4K through grade 12. The current materials, which have been used for over a decade, no longer reflect the latest standards or best practices for teaching and learning math, MMSD said. The last time MMSD updated its approach to instruction and materials for math was in 2014.
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The district is taking lessons from changes in literacy curriculum through Act 20 — which implemented phonics-based instruction in place of the previous whole-word reading curriculum. It plans to leverage the experience to implement materials that are pertinent to student success.
Change also comes at the heels of Blacks for Political and Social Action Dane County’s annual Parents Summit. Noted in the summit was a slight increase in math scores from MMSD for Wisconsin’s standardized test, the Forward Exam. Madison Metropolitan School District saw an increase in test results from Black students from 10.1 in 2023-24 to 10.2 in 2024-25.
Changes are not necessarily a direct action response to the summit, but addressing the achievement gap has been critical in new curricula in Wisconsin.
A request for proposal has been opened up by MMSD to review and select new K-8 math resources. The process is intended to identify resources that meet state standards, promote understanding and fluency and support the needs of all learners — including multilingual and students with disabilities.
New materials are expected to be introduced in middle schools for the 2026-27 school year and 2027-28 for elementary schools.
