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The term “Singapore Math” evolved in the US back in 2000 when mathematicians, media sources, and education pioneers referred to the Singaporean textbooks, Primary Mathematics, distributed by SingaporeMath.com, as “Singapore Math.” The Primary Mathematics books were the curriculum used in Singapore that helped boost their small country’s achievement to the top of the international ranking in mathematics achievement found in the TIMSS report. Singaporeans do not refer to their math as “Singapore Math” but, rather, as “Maths.”
SDE became interested in Singapore Math early on, when only a small percentage of public and private schools were “piloting” the Primary Mathematics curriculum. The results of these piloted programs provided overwhelming evidence that those using Singapore Math were finding success, as long as their pilots incorporated effective preparation and professional development for the educators teaching the curriculum.
In January, 2005, with funding from the U.S. Department of Education, the American Institutes for Research (AIR) conducted a study examining the differences in math-teaching methods between the United States and Singapore. Click here to view the full published report.
In Nov 2007, the California Department of Education approved for adoption a new math series based on the Primary Mathematics curriculum. Other schools and districts across the country are using key components of Singapore Math as an intervention program for both their struggling population AND their gifted & talented population of students. Many more are supplementing their daily mathematics instruction with components of Singapore Math. And, numerous schools and districts have adopted Singapore Math and the Primary Mathematics series as their mathematics curriculum.
In response to the need for effective professional development for educators teaching the curriculum, SDE began working with educational consultants, classroom practitioners piloting the program, Singaporean educators, and Singaporemath.com. We identified the critical training components necessary for educators to implement Singapore Math strategies as either a supplement to an existing non-Singapore Math curriculum or to adopt a Singapore Math curriculum as their sole mathematics curriculum. SDE then developed a training program – Singapore Math for US™ – that identifies the key components of the Singaporean approach to teaching mathematics that can be incorporated into US classrooms.
Today, educators can receive training in Singapore Math from SDE in a variety of ways.
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